The main reason werewolves and vampires were willing to marry human men despite being incredibly powerful was their obsession with bloodlines. The nobler the lineage, the purer the blood.

When the purest bloodlines combined, they would produce the strongest offspring.

That was why my parents decided to marry me and Delroy off to the two great factions. No matter which side ended up having children with us, they would profit.

I put on a gentle smile, loosened my tie to reveal my solid chest, and walked up to Vivian. I brushed a slightly calloused hand lightly over her cheek.

Her expression eased a little, but in the next second, she grabbed my hand in a crushing grip and hurled me onto the bed. "If you dare contaminate my bloodline, don't blame me for eating you alive."

The stone bed dug into my back so hard it burned, but I kept my face calm. I wrapped my arms around Vivian and looked up at her with tender affection.

"Babe, what are you talking about? I only took so long because my father was telling me how to serve you properly."

Vivian's eyes remained cold and dark. Clearly, she didn't buy my story.

"Why wait until today to tell you that? Why didn't he do it a few days ago?"

I pressed my lips together, like I was struggling to say something shameful.

"Actually… there's another reason he came." I hesitated, as if torn. "He also told me to keep a secret."

I acted like I'd finally made up my mind. "But now that we're married, we're husband and wife. There shouldn't be any secrets between us. I only just found out that my brother, Delroy, isn't actually related to us by blood. He doesn't have noble blood at all. Do you think anything will happen to him if the vampire clan finds out?"

Vivian's eyes lit up at once. Her tail shot up behind her and started wagging happily. She immediately let go of me and bolted out the door.

Only when she was completely out of sight did I finally relax. No way was I sleeping with Vivian. With her size and viciousness in bed, she would probably leave me half-dead after one night. Luckily, my gamble paid off.

In my past life, Delroy had joined forces with my parents and insisted I was the one with impure blood. Vivian had stood there, gloating while watching.

Leila had slapped me almost immediately, but since I'd already gone through the First Embrace, she didn't kill me. This time around, I wondered if Delroy could survive the test.

…

Vivian stormed back into the base the next day, with Delroy, Leila, and Father behind her.

The moment she saw me, her eyes practically blazed with rage. She raised her hand and slapped me across the face. "Where the hell did you actually go last night, you two-timing jerk? I asked your father. You weren't with him at all.

"And another thing—Delroy is the one with pure blood. You're the fraud! I can't believe you actually tried to taint the werewolf bloodline!"

Werewolves were incredibly strong. My head snapped to the side, and I spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with several teeth.

I let myself collapse to the floor, eyes reddening as I stared at Father and shouted, "Are you still going to protect Delroy even now, Father?"

Then, I crawled toward Vivian, clutching at the hem of her pants as I pleaded, "Babe, please believe me. Look at me and my father—we're like carbon copies of each other. How could I not be of the Andrews bloodline?"

She looked down at me as I groveled at her feet, then looked over at Delroy behind her. In the end, she waved a hand and had me dragged off to the dungeon. "Don't worry, Titus. I'll get to the bottom of this."

I nodded. "I trust you, babe."

The dungeon was damp, grim, and full of death. Most of the prisoners were humans who had resisted, also known as demon hunters.

Because I was Vivian's husband, I was thrown into a cell of my own. I easily talked the guards into leaving. Only then did I scrutinize the man not far away, his whole body covered in blood.

"Don't you dare die. I know you're a demon hunter who got caught working as a mole on the inside. Trust me—I'll get you out of here, and I'll take your place as an even better mole," I said.

His drooping eyelids lifted a fraction. When he realized I didn't have a trace of magic, the corner of his lips curled into a mocking smile. "You?"

I nodded. "I'm Vivian Wolfe's brand-new husband. With a status like that, no one will ever suspect me."

"You're already in chains yourself. Why should I trust you? For all I know, they sent you here to pry information out of me."

His doubts didn't rattle me at all. I calmly laid out several key turning-point events from my past life. Then, I watched as his eyes shifted from being skeptical to shocked and finally to utterly convinced.

I knew it. This trip to the dungeons hadn't been for nothing. Now, it was time to get out.

After I'd been locked up for a full day and night, an enraged Vivian finally agreed to see me. "Why was it you who married me back then, you pathetic scum?"

Her whip cracked across my back, immediately drawing blood.

I didn't make a sound or even frown. Instead, I crawled to Vivian's feet and spoke as tenderly as always, "Babe, you have to believe me. Delroy and I were switched at birth. That's the only reason he got to grow up in the nobles' castle all these years. With how advanced technology is now, a DNA test is all you need to find out the truth.

"This is the perfect chance to humiliate the vampires, babe. Think about how long you've been at each other's throats. Leila is married to an impostor, yet she still walks around looking all smug. If you expose Delroy's true identity, won't that keep her under your heel forever?"

Vivian's whip froze in midair as she looked me over. Just when I thought she still didn't get it, she finally pulled me up and into her arms. Her movements were gentle, but her words were ice-cold.

"If you're lying to me again this time, don't blame me for being ruthless."

I was taken to do a DNA test. Father and Mother tried to bribe the doctor, but Vivian's people caught them on the spot.

At that point, what else was there for Vivian not to understand? She made a huge show of storming the vampires' castle with her people and forcing Delroy to do a DNA test, too.

The results came out quickly. I was the only one with noble blood, while Delroy was a fraud.

Leila kicked him out and demanded that Vivian hand me over. "Only someone with blood as pure as mine has the right to marry the purest human."

What she meant, of course, was that Vivian's own bloodline wasn't pure enough. I immediately fanned the flames—as if a werewolf would just swallow that!

Vivian lunged at Leila, and the two of them started tearing into each other.

In the chaos, I set fire to the dungeon and broke the demon hunter out, framing the whole thing on the vampires. However, the demon hunter had been locked up too long. He couldn't even walk properly anymore.

Vivian and Leila's brawl had both races on full alert in an instant. The gates were heavily guarded; there was no way I could get the demon hunter out.

Seeing werewolves posted everywhere, I made a snap decision and dragged him back to my bedroom. The most dangerous place was the safest, right?

As soon as I shut the door, I heard Vivian's delighted voice drift in from outside. "Titus, where are you?"

My heart lurched. Why was she back so fast?

If she found out I'd rescued the demon hunter, I wouldn't escape a brutal round of torture, no matter how pure my blood was. Worse, I would completely lose her trust.

It didn't help that werewolves liked living in caves. Even after moving into human society and proper houses, most of our furniture was still made of stone. There was nowhere to hide another person.

Vivian's footsteps drew closer. She was about to push the door open.

I gritted my teeth, grabbed the demon hunter, and rolled with him onto the bed. We'd just yanked the covers over us when the door slammed open.

Vivian walked in, her mood fantastic. "Good thing you chose me, Titus. You should've seen Leila's face when she learned the truth about Delroy. It was priceless… Wait. Why does it smell like blood in here?"

Damn it! Werewolves had an insanely sharp sense of smell, and I hadn't had time to bandage the demon hunter's wounds.

Vivian's nose twitched as she traced the scent to my bed.

"Titus, are you hurt?" For once, there was real concern in her eyes.

I shook my head, looking embarrassed. "Don't ask. My hemorrhoid is acting up."

Vivian clearly didn't get what I was saying. She reached out to yank back the blanket. "What are you even talking about? Let me see where you're hurt."

Then, her pupils blew wide, and she stared at me in utter disbelief.