Raelor’s eyes narrowed in confusion.

I realized he hadn’t heard what I said earlier, so I made up a reason on the spot. "Lyndra will be leaving the pack soon to travel."

Raelor nodded and did not ask further questions. It was clear he did not care about the answer. In his mind, my social circle, especially my friends, had never mattered.

Four days before the ceremony, a human photographer sent Raelor the edited travel footage of him and Seraphine.

On the sofa, the two of them leaned against each other like intimate mates.

"Raelor, does this shot look good? The lighting feels like the Moon Goddess’s blessing," Seraphine said softly.

"Mhm. The photographer handled the light well. It looks sacred. It suits you," Raelor replied in a low voice indulgently.

Just then, I returned from outside.

When Raelor saw me, he hurriedly pushed Seraphine away. His movements were slightly flustered. A trace of awkwardness flickered through his eyes before he quickly regained composure.

"Freya, you’re back just in time. Take a look at the video we filmed." Seraphine blinked at me with wide, innocent eyes.

I glanced at the floating projection.

In the footage, Raelor was wearing the ceremonial robe meant only for a Marking Ceremony. He looked handsome and imposing, while the she-wolf beside him nestled into his arms with a radiant smile.

I forced a faint smile. "It does look good."

That photographer and tailor were the very ones I had worked hard to secure. Now they were dressing someone else as the bride.

Raelor froze. He had not expected me to show no jealousy at all, much less praise Seraphine so generously.

Seraphine continued chattering.

Raelor, however, fell silent. His gaze remained fixed on me because he suddenly realized that I had not taken the initiative to speak to him for a long time.

During the week he and Seraphine stayed in Spring Valley, I had not sent a single message. I had not even used the Mind Link.

I had been too quiet. Unnaturally quiet.

Seraphine was still talking excitedly on the projection, but Raelor’s attention was entirely on me. An inexplicable unease rose in his chest.

Two days before the ceremony, I went to the Healing Sanctum to collect some spare moonlight herb.

I did not expect to run into Raelor and Seraphine in the rest chamber. She had just finished a pup examination.

Raelor stepped out to speak with Chief Healer Halven Gray. Only Seraphine and I remained inside.

Seraphine looked at the cup in my hand. It held Moon Spring water supplied exclusively to the pack.

"Freya, I heard Moon Spring water is good for the pup. May I have a sip?" she asked gently.

I did not wish to create trouble, so I handed the cup to her. She took it and turned her back to me to drink.

I had not even had time to leave when suddenly she clutched her abdomen. The cup fell from her hand and shattered against the floor.

"Ah! It hurts! My stomach!"

Her shrill scream drew Raelor in immediately.

He rushed inside and saw Seraphine collapsed on the floor while I stood nearby.

Seraphine was drenched in cold sweat. She pointed weakly at the spilled water. "Raelor… the water Freya gave me… it smells like wolfsbane… save our pup…"

Chief Healer Halven followed closely behind. He dipped a finger into the water on the ground. His fingertip instantly blistered and decayed.

"It is wolfsbane! How could wolfsbane appear inside the pack?!"

Every gaze in the room locked onto me.

Seraphine pointed at me, her expression full of pain and accusation.

Before I could defend myself—

Smack.

A loud slap struck my face.

Raelor’s palm stung from the force.

I staggered backward several steps. Blood seeped from the corner of my mouth. My cheek burned.

In the twenty years we had known each other, this was the first time he had ever laid a hand on me, and for another she-wolf.

Raelor’s eyes were bloodshot as he shouted at me, "Freya! How can you be so vicious?! I knew something was wrong with you these past few days. So this is what you were waiting for!

"I’m warning you now. If anything happens to Seraphine or the pup, I will make you pay with your life!"

He lifted the unconscious Seraphine and rushed toward the emergency chamber like a mad wolf.

Before leaving, he turned back to look at me. There was nothing in his eyes but disgust and hatred, not a trace of the affection that once existed.

I covered my swollen cheek and stood there with reddened eyes, and then, unexpectedly, I laughed.

Good.

Very good.

That slap severed the very last thread tying my heart to him.

After Raelor came out of the emergency chamber, he did not listen to a single word of my explanation. He directly issued a confinement order.

Two high-ranking wolf guards stood at the entrance of the residence, sealing every exit.

"Freya, stay here and reflect on your actions," Raelor said coldly. "Until you realize your mistake and are willing to kneel and apologize to Seraphine."

He confiscated my communicator, cutting off all contact between me and the outside world.

He assumed that as a physically fragile Healer, once deprived of these, I would have no choice but to obey him and let him control me.

However, he forgot something. I sat alone in the empty stone house, listening to the steady footsteps of the guards outside.

Late the next night, Raelor returned. There was a faint herbal scent clinging to him. It was the calming pregnancy incense Seraphine often used.

"Seraphine is out of danger," he said. "But the pup was affected. It has become restless. You should be grateful the pup survived. Otherwise…"

He did not finish the sentence. The meaning was clear.

Seeing that I merely listened in silence, he assumed I had realized my mistake. His tone softened slightly, though it felt more like condescension.

"Attend tomorrow’s ceremony on time. I will tell the pack that your physical discomfort led to the incident. Considering you are about to become my mate—the future Luna—kneeling will not be necessary. But you will apologize to her before the pack and promise to use your healing gift to safeguard the pup.

"Also, Seraphine prefers to have more attendees. All pack members will attend tomorrow."

I looked at him. Words lodged in my throat.

Raelor frowned, clearly displeased by my silence. "This is your only chance to preserve your position as my mate and future Luna. Freya, do not test my patience."

He tossed a cheap ceremonial robe onto the floor and turned to leave. The sharp click of the lock echoed once more.

The next day, the full moon was nearly upon us.

I picked the lock.

Using the potent sedative powder I had hidden beneath my fingernails in advance, I dispersed it through the ventilation slit and quietly rendered the two guards unconscious.

I did not put on the robe that symbolized Luna status. Instead, I changed into fitted black attire suitable for movement.

Then I gave one last look at the place I had lived for five years.

Without looking back, I slipped through the hidden path behind the mountain and disappeared into the morning mist.

Meanwhile, outside the Healing Sanctum, Raelor carefully helped a seemingly- frail Seraphine into the carriage, preparing to head toward the altar.

On the way, he attempted to summon me through the Mind Link, issuing a command.

The connection felt empty. There was no response.

He did not think much of it. He assumed I was still sulking. He sent me a message, impatience evident.

"Have the ceremonial offerings been arranged? When are you arriving? Don't make everyone wait!"

No reply.

He scrolled back through our previous messages. Only then did he notice that for the past month, almost every message was from me.

"When are you returning to the den tomorrow? I made rabbit stew.

"Which beast fangs do you prefer for the ceremony decorations?

"For the altar flowers, I chose moonlight orchids. Is that alright?"

His replies were always the same: "Anything. You decide. Whatever."

The last message I sent had asked whether he would return for dinner. He had not even replied with "whatever".

A sudden, powerful unease clenched around his heart.

The last time he mentioned providing Seraphine with his bloodline, my gaze had been calmer than ever before.

From that day on, I had stopped initiating conversation. I had stopped waiting for him to return.

The unease intensified. He did not even bother changing into ceremonial attire. Leaving Seraphine behind, he shifted into wolf form and sprinted toward the square.

When he arrived at the altar plaza, his friends and his mother, Vaelira Thorne, were waiting near the entrance.

"Why haven’t you changed into ceremonial robes? Didn’t Freya come with you?" Vaelira asked, frowning at his disheveled state.

Raelor paused, forcing down the pounding in his chest. "She should already be at the altar."

However, there was no sign of me anywhere near the altar. Besides my absence, there were no pack members gathered to witness the ceremony. Only a few servants lingered, cleaning.

He grabbed a passing elder named Radley Burbridge. "The ceremony is about to begin. Where is Freya? Where is everyone?"

Elder Radley looked confused.

"Alpha, wasn’t the ceremony canceled half a month ago? Freya personally submitted the request to the Council of Elders. We approved it."

Raelor froze.

The ceremony… had been canceled?