CELESTINA VILLARAMA’s POV

The brightness that emitted from the chandelier on the ceiling made me wince as soon as I opened my eyes. I tried my best to get up from the bed that I was lying on, only to be assisted by a man who I didn’t notice. His spiky, pushed back, gray hair looked perfect on the suit that he wore. I don’t know the exact reason but I somehow felt scared of him, though there’s something inside me that is getting thrilled just by being near him.

The man was staring blankly on my neck, I knew that he was eyeing my golden necklace just like Kristoffer. “Seriously, what’s with this necklace that makes the both of you lose control of yourselves?” I unconsciously mumbled a query which should have just remained within my mind.

“Know your place, Celestina Villarama.”

Those were simply five words, but it already sent an aching sensation to my heart. His words seemed to cut through me like a knife.

“That crimson hair of yours reminds me of someone I hated. Even that necklace that you have was similar to what she possessed,” he muttered as he closed the book that he was reading. “Everyone here talks to me with respect. No one dared to look me in the eye. Never have I received a word from anyone without my permission. Don’t you have any idea who I am?”

“I would have done the same if I knew who you were,” I replied in a straightforward manner, and there’s no explanation how I was able to speak without stuttering.

‘Mate. Mate. Mate.’

The same word kept on repeating in my mind every single time that I gaze upon this man beside the bed.

“Should I show you what I can do for you to personally determine who I am? I’m not fond of introducing myself…” he said, pulling me out of the bed.

His strength was sufficient for me to be carried over to the other direction as my back slammed through the walls. Fear instilled within my soul. I noticed how his eye color changed from black to a slight shade of blue, but it was only for a second.

“I’m Siege Wong, and I’m the Crimson Moon Pack’s alpha, and I wasn’t really pleased with how you talked to me.”

The exact minute that I heard his name, I pushed him away. “Siege Wong? My mate?” I whispered, slightly parting my lips.

Siege’s eyebrows furrowed as his fangs sharpened. “The f*ck are you saying? If you’re scheming something, you should know that the consequence wouldn’t be that feasible for you to escape.”

My heart was thumping loud. There was something inside me that made me want to touch him.

From others’ perspective, I may look crazy how I was raising my dress right in front of a man. I just had to show him the scratches that were embedded on my thigh. I have no idea since when it was there, but I know that it was a mark from no other than Siege.

“With your silence, I was able to confirm that you’re really my mate,” I concluded with a bright smile on my lips, as if I have been proclaimed as a queen of a kingdom.

He hissed instead of reciprocating the same energy that I gave. “I, Siege Wong, reject you, Celestina Villarama, to be my mate,” he declared with a cold, death glare. "I would never give my mark to someone like you." His voice had become rough and growled as I stood here, staring at him with no emotions to feel, completely taken aback by his words. My eyes glazed over as tears slowly rolled down my cheeks.

I know nothing about this mating process, but one thing is for sure, I have been declined to be the luna of the Crimson Moon Pack’s alpha.

Doomed with the sensation of anger, I clicked my tongue as I rushed out of the castle through the room’s window, since there was no main exit. The power of rejection was beyond what I could have handled. I couldn’t release my wolf and I couldn’t even communicate with it.

What’s wrong with me?

Do I even own any wolf?

Am I going to be this helpless until I rot in this realm?

Both of my knees and shoulders were bleeding because of the impact of my fall from the third floor of the castle, down to the mountain hill. I was planning to head over to the nearby lake, but before I could have started to walk, I saw how it immediately regenerated. It was as if the scars never existed, only the droplets of blood remained.

If I had this sort of ability, then there must still be a chance that I’d find my wolf soon enough. I have already turned eighteen. I would surely be taken for granted until I’m able to turn myself into a wolf.

“Sarina, where are you?” I asked as I gazed upon the illumination of the moonlight that was striking on me. “I have a lot of questions for you. If you don’t come out, I’ll destroy this necklace of yours.”

It may sound redundant, but this golden necklace seems to play a vital role within the Crimson Moon Pack and the moon goddess. And I guess I wasn’t mistaken.

The moon goddess descended to the ground with her wings visible to my eyes. “Was there a need for you to summon me out of the blue?” Sarina rolled her eyes as if she was disturbed.

“Aren’t you the one who decides who gets to be our mates?” I asked, and she simply hummed in agreement. “Then, you know that Alpha Wong was my mate, right?”

“Bingo!” She raised her thumb with a cheeky smile, as if she was trying to provoke me.

“Then how the hell will you explain the reason why he rejected me as his mate?” I frustratingly questioned as I stomped my foot.

Sarina smirked as she walked closer. She held a few strands of my hair and rolled it around before she glanced at me.

“Why would anyone bother being mates with someone who doesn’t possess a wolf?”

CELESTINA VILLARAMA’s POV

Sarina was literally someone who I surely wouldn’t get along with that smoothly. From the very first start, I already knew that there was something about her that would ridicule the hell out of my life, and I wasn’t even mistaken. I shouldn’t have gotten myself involved with someone like her, but there’s nothing that I can do about it.

She was the one who approached me first.

“And exactly why would you bother making me Alpha Wong’s mate if you know that?” I asked her with my eyebrows furrowed.

A soft laughter came out from her mouth. It frustrates me how each and every action of her just seemed to be flawless. “If you’re really bound to be mates with him, then, there shouldn’t be any hindrance, right? I can assure you that you’re his mate, mark my words. However, you also have a duty as his mate—”

“I have no interest with this sh*t anymore,” I interrupted her statement and attempted to walk out from where I came, but she stopped me in a split second without even touching me physically.

“You have to prove to me that you’re going to be worthy as Siege Wong’s mate.” Sarina’s words were deemed to be absolute; I had no means for rebuttal. “Until then, I wouldn’t revoke the curse that I have bestowed upon you.” As graceful as she could, Sarina flew away from my vision, leaving me completely clueless.

“What am I supposed to do now?” I whispered to myself like a loser, realizing that I have to go back to the packhouse where my mate resided.

***

As planned, I’m back inside the castle where the same boy greeted me. “Miss Celestina Villarama, you’re back!” he cheerfully said as he ran towards my direction.

“W-woah…”

The boy held both of my hands. He was seriously freezing and it was as if he wasn’t even living. If only I believed in ghosts, I would have assumed that he was one. “Master Kristoffer Wong has been looking for you. You should pay him a visit tomorrow morning. For now, I think you need to rest…” He let go of my hands, leading the way upstairs where my room was.

“What are you?” I asked out of pure curiosity.

“I’m just a simple pup, nothing more than that.”

“That’s not what I meant…”

“Are you talking about how I knew that you weren’t born from this realm?”

My eyes widened in surprise as I heard what I’ve been meaning to ask. “Yeah.”

We stopped in front of the door of my room as we faced one another. “Time will be the only one that can answer that, Miss Celestina Villarama. I’m not allowed to say anything else to you as it may…” He glanced on his own feet. “...lead to my death,” he continued, then raised his head once more to meet my gaze. “It would also be best for you to shut your mouth regarding where you came from, especially now that you don’t even remember a single thing about your past life before you came here.”

“Are you possibly undergoing the same experience as what’s bound to happen to me?”

He shook his head. “No, Miss Celestina Villarama. We’re all given different purposes and roles to fulfill in the Realm of Xenon. Although, one thing’s for sure…” The boy glanced around the hallway to check whether there was someone eavesdropping before he continued to speak. “You wouldn’t have the chance to meet your family or friends from your original dimension. There’s little to zero chance that you’d actually be granted the opportunity to return to your past life. So as much as possible, just stay put and obey our royalties.”

“Why didn’t you notify me that Celeste has already returned to our premises, little one?” An authoritative tone echoed all throughout the castle.

“M-Master Kristoffer Wong!” The boy flinched, unaware of the beta’s presence. “F-forgive me… I have intended for Miss Celestina Villarama to have a good night’s rest before meeting with you early in the morning,” he explained while rubbing both of his hands in front of his chest as fast as he could.

“Mhm…” Kristoffer hummed, slowly approaching us. “Celeste… Come with me, there’s something that we have to discuss urgently and it could not wait any longer until the sun shines,” he muttered with a tender smile as he gestured to the boy that he must get out of his sight.

‘Run away while you still can, Celestina!’

I held the edge of my head when I heard the same voice bugging me. It’s sending buzzing sounds to my ear, hence, making me unable to perceive whatever it was that the beta was talking about.

“Celeste…”

‘This wolf is dangerous, you mustn't give him your full trust no matter what happens, Celestina. He knows my identity despite the reality that I am still cursed by the moon goddess.’

“Hey, Celeste… Are you still with me?” Kristoffer waved in front of my eyes.

And by the time that I still haven’t given him any sort of response, he immediately closed the distance between our faces.

“W-woah…”

“I knew that you wouldn’t be able to ignore my charm.” He smirked before stepping back. “As I was saying, my brother, Alpha Siege… is he really your mate?”

I winced when I heard his question. I don’t know if it’s just my imagination, or he really sounded like he was in pain as he muttered those words out of his own mouth, as if he hesitated a couple times before finally mustering up the courage to ask me.

‘There’s no need for you to answer him truthfully, Celestina.’ I heaved out an exhausting sigh as I seemed to be battling with myself.

“I’m not sure about that, M-Master… Kristoffer?” I stuttered as I called him by his name as I literally felt goosebumps on my whole body when he gazed upon me. “You know how I’ve been rejected by the Alpha. There’s no way that I am his mate if he couldn’t sense me or my wolf,” I added, thinking that the alpha may be right, I must be getting my hopes high just because I have stepped foot on their pack house.

Right after I gave him my reply, his eyes turned blue just like from the first time that I saw him.

Kristoffer caught me off guard when he rushed to my side and locked me with both of his hands pinned on the wall from the opposite sides of my shoulders. “Celestina Villarama, you’re under divine punishment with me for the rest of the week. You would not be able to stay away from me unless I say so,” he firmly said with a straight face.

“D-divine punishment..?!”

CELESTINA VILLARAMA’s POV

There must have been some kind of misunderstanding. There’s no way that I’d actually be under divine punishment by the beta of Crimson Moon Pack himself. If there wasn’t, then in that case, was the proclamation of divine punishment required to be said before the sunrise?

“Master Kristoffer!” I yelled out loud as I covered myself with the blanket of my bed. “Damn this place!”

“What seems to be the trouble, Lady Villarama?” one of the maids approached me.

I quickly shook my head even though she couldn’t see me at all. I didn’t even think that there was someone inside my room since I couldn’t sense anyone else other than myself. “Excuse me…” I called the maid, then she instantly moved over to my direction and patiently waited for what I wanted to say. “Wouldn’t Master Siege be frustrated to see that I am still inside the pack house?”

She held the temple of her head, hesitating what answer she would give me. “Lady Villarama, I’m afraid that I can’t give a proper response to your query. It would be best if you’d talk this out with the alpha himself.”

I heaved out a loud sigh as I attempted to walk out of my room. “What is it?” I muttered when the maid held my wrist to stop me from going out.

She hurriedly removed her grip from my wrist, frightened that she’d be seen by someone else. “Both Master Siege and Master Kristoffer have the same thing in common… You must pay close attention to the color of their eyes. It changes to blue whenever they see, hear, and feel something that they dislike,” she informed me.

I smiled at her as I crossed the threshold, proceeding over to the training facility where I’ve been told to head over directly as soon as I wake up.

“Some random woman who doesn’t own a wolf dared to say that I’m her mate,” uttered by a faint voice that shouted authority.

“You’re late!” Kristoffer yelled before I stepped foot on the red mat.

“Kris… I don’t remember asking you to call her here,” Siege said as he hissed, not even bothering to give me a glance.

Their sensing capabilities really are on a different level. Both of them knew that I was on their range without batting an eye on me. “Master Kristoffer, what did you want to—”

“Shut your filthy mouth.” Siege pressed his palm onto my mouth. The impact was too strong for me to handle, making it completely impossible for me to control my balance. “I can’t sense anything from you other than the desire to take your soul away. You’re actually fortunate enough that you’re still standing inside my territory.” His hand traveled down to my neck, strangling me as if he really had the intent to kill me right here and right now.

Just like what the maid told me earlier, Siege eyes really did change its color to blue. He’s most probably not bluffing about what he’s saying.

I can’t breathe…

As I was about to kick him in between his legs, Kristoffer pulled his brother away from me. I continuously coughed as he was forced to let me go.

“Keep your hands off of Celeste, Siege.”

The way that he said those words weren’t enough to give me the butterflies. It only made me tremble as I fell to the ground with both of my thighs shaking. The tension between them seemed to get worse when Kristoffer stood in front of me with one of his arms extended to protect me from harm.

“What a sight to see that you’re suddenly interested in a stranger, Kris,” he scoffed. “But what can you do against me?”

Kristoffer quickly held my hand and made sure that I wouldn’t be able to escape, forcing me to get up. “Can you run?” he whispered to me and I gave him a simple nod before he returned his attention to his alpha brother. “As of the record, I have never won against you in a duel. Not even once, since you never showed me any mercy as a brother. You only cared about your reputation and what the others would say if they see that you’ve been defeated by someone else… Surely, they wouldn’t want an alpha that can easily be beaten, right?” He seemed to be stalling some time for me to gather up my remaining strength.

As if on cue, Kris let go of me and gave me a gesture to run away. If one of them tried to stop me, I know that I wouldn’t even be able to get out of the training facility safely.

Less than half an hour passed by, I was leaning my back on the wall outside the mansion when Kristoffer popped out of nowhere. “Seriously, what’s your deal, Master Kristoffer?” I could no longer suppress the confusion that I had stored within myself.

He held both of my shoulders as he stared at my eyes directly. “Listen, Celeste… You have to get out of the pack house and as much as possible, you shouldn’t return here unless you’ve been trained to the bones. Siege isn’t an ordinary wolf, he’s the alpha. Even if I’m his brother, I wouldn’t stand a chance against him, which is why I chose to run away rather than initiate a fight back there.” He stepped back as I noticed the slight change in his breathing pattern.

“Why are you doing this for me?”

“I’m not doing this for your sake, Celeste. I’m doing this for the sake of Siege. I don’t want to see him killing any innocent women anymore.”

I repetitively blinked after hearing what he said. “W-what do you mean? Does Master Siege kill any woman that he doesn’t like?”

Kristoffer shook his head twice. “Whether it be men or women, as long as you irritate him, he wouldn’t spare a second to take your life away.” He lent me some sort of map which provided a detailed pathway of the Dark Valley’s Territory. “You can think that I’m protecting you, and being locked up under my protection is your divine punishment.”