The air in the study instantly froze.
I slowly turned around, my gaze passing over Serena's smug face to land directly on Asher.
"Is that what you think too?"
He stood there, his expression constantly shifting.
His eyelashes trembled once. His eyes began to wander.
Finally, he avoided my gaze completely.
Those few seconds of silence spoke louder than any words.
The former Alpha suddenly slammed his hand on the desk. "Ridiculous! Aria has been in this pack for twenty years. Even if she won't be your mate, she's still an important pack member. And her parents saved our family's lives!"
"Dad!" Asher finally spoke. "Serena is right. Since we've made this decision, we need to cut ties completely."
I looked at him and suddenly smiled.
That calm smile made Asher visibly stunned.
"Alpha, since this is Asher's decision, I accept it."
I looked around the study at everyone, my gaze finally settling on Asher.
He instinctively turned his face away, his fingers anxiously twisting his sleeves.
"Alpha, since we're speaking so bluntly, some debts should be settled clearly."
My voice was soft, yet it made the entire study fall silent.
"I took over the pack's hunting squad when I came of age. That's been seven full years."
Serena let out a snort of laughter, but Asher silenced her with a look.
"The first year, my tactics secured the northern hunting grounds. The pack's food reserves doubled."
"The second year, I led teams that repelled Bloodclaw Pack's invasion. Our territory expanded by a third."
"The third year, I negotiated an alliance with Howling Vanguard Pack..."
I listed them one by one. With each achievement I named, the former Alpha's expression grew more serious.
"All of this combined—in seven years, the resources I secured for this pack tripled what we had before."
Asher bit his lip corner lightly.
Of course he knew what these numbers meant.
In my previous life, Frostmoon Pack could rank among the elite packs, and he could become Alpha King, all because of the foundation these resources provided.
"The old Alpha raised me for twenty years. I secured triple territory for Frostmoon Pack." My tone remained calm throughout. "Today, this debt is finally settled."
"We owe each other nothing."
"I'll leave with nothing, and we'll have no further connection."
Serena suddenly sneered. "That sounds nice, but is this really leaving with nothing?"
She stepped forward, roughly pulling at my clothes.
"This designer dress is worth over a hundred thousand, isn't it?"
She grabbed my sleeve, exposing the healing scars on my arms.
"The treatment for these wounds used the pack's most precious healing serums."
Then she pulled out the moonstone bracelet on my wrist.
"These moonstones are all pack resources, worth millions. And you still have the nerve to say we're even?" But these stones were given to me by the old Alpha when my wolf fell into a coma after I took a fatal silver arrow meant for Asher in a battle against rogues. Without these stones, my wolf would become weak and powerless.
Serena knew this perfectly well, yet she continued pressing aggressively. I knew Asher was allowing this.
"Your wealth and status—what part of it wasn't given by the pack?"
I let her pull and humiliate me, my gaze remaining locked on Asher.
His nails had dug into his palms, yet he remained silent.
"Asher." I asked softly. "Even if you have no feelings for me, don't all these years of fighting side by side count for anything?"
His eyelashes trembled slightly. He opened his mouth.
But ultimately said nothing.
I thought that being reborn, I had already let go.
I didn't expect that in this moment, my heart would still feel like a piece had been carved out, painful enough to suffocate.
I suppressed my emotions and began unbuttoning my clothes.
Dress, purse, watch, heels.
I removed them one by one, folding them neatly on the floor.
Finally, I even removed my stockings, standing barefoot in my underwear on the cold marble floor.
But Serena said it still wasn't enough. "Your wolf's glossy, smooth coat—that was nourished by eating the pack's finest prey, wasn't it?"
With that, she had the guards shave off my wolf's fur. This was the greatest humiliation for any werewolf, yet Asher still said nothing.
Serena's face was full of victorious smugness. She continued, "Now that you've lost your core member status, as the future Luna, shouldn't you kneel and bow to me?"
"Enough!"
The former Alpha couldn't take anymore.
"Stop this!"
I said calmly, "I want to leave Frostmoon Pack to become a free wolf. You can reclaim my possessions, but you cannot demand I bow."
"From now on, I am just me. Asher and I have nothing to do with each other anymore!"
