Chapter 2

Asher glared at me before instructing the other werewolves, "Take her to Alpha Cassian so that he can punish this rude she-wolf!"

Almost immediately, a group of werewolves closed in on me with weapons in hand. Then, they violently dragged me into Cassian's room.

When Cassian saw me, a look of contempt crossed his face. "I knew you wouldn't give up on becoming my Luna. Have you memorized the oaths?"

With an icy expression, I replied, "You've misunderstood. I didn't change my mind. I will never recite the oaths."

Iris growled in agreement.

Cassian sized me up impatiently. "How stubborn. Since you aren't going to obey me, as Alpha of the pack, I shall now command you to swear the oath!"

Upon hearing that, a tinge of bitterness crept into my heart. I asked, word by word, "Cassian, do you remember me? When we were young, we—"

Displeased, he interrupted me before I could finish, "You're lying! You're not one of our pack. How could I possibly have met you before! I warn you, the Moonfall pack hates being lied to. Tell another lie, and I'll make sure you pay for it!"

He flashed his sharp fangs at me, all the while glaring at me as though I were his prey.

Iris almost lost her temper. "What expectations do you even hold from a werewolf like him?"

I was very disappointed.

Cassian had a really tough build. He was from the strongest breed among the werewolves. I was really pleased to have him as my mate.

However, he had forgotten about our past. He had told me when we were younger that he liked me and would mark me to be his Luna after he took over as Alpha.

Sure enough, my mother was right—male werewolves learned to deceive from a young age.

I had initially planned to tell him my identity, but it seemed I didn't have to anymore.

The Cassian standing before me saw me as nothing more than an opportunistic she-wolf currying favor with the powerful.

I took several deep breaths to get a grip on the swirl of emotions within me. Then, I calmly said, "Cassian, even if you've forgotten about me, I'm still your future Luna. It's inappropriate of you to be so rude to me during our marking ceremony."

Upon hearing that, Cassian stopped baring his fangs at me. However, his gaze was still filled with contempt.

"How dare you call yourself my future Luna. You and your family buttered up my father so that he would agree to our bonding and make it a prerequisite for me to take over as Alpha. If it weren't for that, did you think you could even set foot on our pack's territory?

"Don't even think that you can order my pack around after we bond. You can only stay in my manor and not go anywhere else. It's up to me to choose which she-wolf I prefer to be the mother of my pup. All you have to do is raise my pup obediently. Do you understand?"

Fists clenched, I stared coldly at him. "Since you're that dissatisfied with me, why bother forcing yourself to bond with me? Let's call the marking ceremony off. Don't worry. I'll talk to your father personally, and it won't affect the Moonfall pack in anyway—"

Cassian cut me off in a fury. "Enough, you cunning she-wolf. Don't play me for a fool—you're just using my father to threaten me. Werewolves have always valued strength—how could there be someone as sly as you? It'll be disgraceful to have someone like you be my Luna."

I almost burst out laughing. His imagination was getting the better of him.

I thought I was sincere enough when I made that suggestion, yet he twisted my words and interpreted them differently.

Feeling resigned, I sighed. "Look, let's go to my father now. We'll tell him that we're calling off this ceremony and that I'm the one refusing to be your Luna."

All the other werewolves were stunned upon hearing me.

They finally understood that I wasn't lying about giving up on becoming their Luna.

"Oh dear, she really rejected Alpha Cassian. How dare she?"

"I've never seen such an idiot before. If I could become Alpha Cassian's Luna, I would never give up so easily."

Iris snorted and mocked me—my good intentions had earned me nothing in return.

I was my father's only pup. He had planned to assign one of Cassian's and my pups to lead the kingdom. However, it seemed that was unnecessary.

Cassian was merely a better candidate among the rest, not the only one. Rather than becoming someone's Luna, I preferred becoming an Alpha Queen.

What a pity, though. It was Cassian's father who'd tried all means to finally meet my father. He talked my father into allowing me to bond with Cassian, so that he could use my father's influence to strengthen the Moonfall pack further.

His effort had eventually gone to waste.

Cassian turned to me with reddened eyes, filled with surprise. "Will you really call off the marking ceremony and give up becoming my Luna?"

Smiling, I thrust the attire specially prepared for a Luna on the ground.