Chapter 1

I was one of my pack’s strongest warriors. But one full moon, I lost control. I even hurt my own parents.

To stop it from happening again, I had to endure a ritual every month to seal my wolf.

It was agony.

Until today. The day before my next sealing.

I took the gift I’d planned to give Caleb at our mating ceremony—a moonstone carved with our names—and placed it under my pillow, along with my suicide note.

Then I drank the fatal wolvenom.

I thought this was the only way. So I wouldn't bring disaster down on my parents and my pack. So my fated mate, Caleb, would never have to worry for me again.

But just before the ritual began, I heard Caleb’s voice.

"Just one last time. Once Elara becomes Lead Warrior, we won't have to seal Seraphina's wolf anymore."

My mother's voice was a shredded sob. "But Seraphina's body is already ruined… What kind of life will she have!"

"It won't be for the rest of her life." Caleb’s voice was low, a mix of guilt and stubbornness. "Once she's recovered, I'll hold the mating ceremony with her. She'll become the pack's Luna."

"I'll make up for everything she's been through."

My father’s voice trembled. "So… is the ritual still happening today?"

"Yes." Caleb was silent for a few seconds. "We seal her one more time. Keep her weak for another month, long enough to miss the trials for Lead Warrior. With Seraphina out of the way, Elara's path will be clear."

So I never lost control at all.

Caleb drugged me. He made me lose my mind, made me think I'd lost control.

He said he'd make it up to me.

Little did he know that just moments before，I'd already swallowed the entire vial of wolvenom.

……

"Once Elara becomes Lead Warrior, we won't have to seal Seraphina's wolf anymore…"

"Once she's recovered, I'll hold the mating ceremony with her…"

"I'll make up for everything she's been through."

"Keep her weak for another month, long enough to miss the trials for Lead Warrior…"

I lay quietly on the cold ritual stone, Caleb's cruel, cold words spinning in my head.

"Don't be nervous, Seraphina. You'll be alright," the High Priest whispered, trying to soothe me when he saw how unnaturally pale I was.

His eyes were full of a pity I didn't want.

I knew. He had to know the truth behind this ritual, too.

But who would dare defy an order from the future Alpha of the pack?

My fingers curled slightly, my palm clenched tight around a small glass vial.

It was empty.

Half an hour ago, behind everyone's back, I'd drunk all of the deadly wolfsbane inside.

The poison was eating away at my organs, inch by inch, but I couldn't feel it.

The physical agony was nothing—not even a fraction of the pain of betrayal.

I closed my eyes, my mind flooded with memories of Caleb and me.

We were childhood sweethearts.

I used to think I was the luckiest she-wolf in the world.

When we were young, I was almost kidnapped by a few rogue wolves. Caleb threw himself in front of me without a second thought, shouting, "I dare you to touch her!"

Later, I grew into the pack's most prized talent, the top candidate for the next Lead Warrior.

The rank of Lead Warrior was second only to the Alpha—the highest honor in the pack. The blade that guarded our people.

Back then, Caleb would stand by my side, proudly announcing to everyone, "This is the pride of our pack, my perfect mate!"

I had always believed, with all my heart, that Caleb loved me more than anyone in the world.

But now, he was standing right outside the door, coldly plotting my destruction.

It all started on that chaotic full moon night a year ago.

After I drank the juice Caleb brought me, the world tilted on its axis. All I remember is shifting into my wolf form against my will, and then, nothing.

When I woke up, I was in my own bed.

My mother's arm was wrapped in thick bandages, and my father's face was marked with deep scratches. They kept their heads down, refusing to meet my eyes.

Caleb sat by my bed, his eyes bloodshot. He told me my wolf had suddenly gone wild, attacking everyone who came near me. Including my parents.

"Seraphina, you almost killed them."

Those words were a dagger straight to my heart.

The High Priest gave his diagnosis. "Her wolf spirit is out of control. If we don't contain it, it could lead to a devastating catastrophe."

His solution was a monthly "Sealing Ritual," using ancient runes to temporarily imprison the wolf inside me.

There was no end date.

It was a death sentence. For a wolf who dreamed of becoming Lead Warrior, sealing my spirit was like having my claws ripped out.

That day, my parents stood by my bed and sobbed. I cried tears of despair.

It was Caleb who held me, telling me firmly, "Even if you can't be a warrior, you're still my mate."

"Your safety is all that matters."

I curled up in his warm embrace and, for the sake of that love, I agreed.

But it was all an elaborate lie.

My parents had lost Elara years ago, and they were consumed by a twisted guilt. So, when Caleb proposed this plan to ruin me—to clear the path for Elara—they went along with it.

There was no loss of control. My parents' injuries were fake.

Caleb had drugged me, making me believe I was a monster.

Caleb's arms were warm, but his heart was ice.