Chapter 4

"Lana! Have you lost your mind? Take one more step toward Alpha Ronan, and you'll be killed on the spot!"

Silas snapped his whip again, the lash cutting straight toward my face.

If that strike landed, I would be disfigured. I might even die right there.

"Get out of my way!"

I jerked my head up. A sharp, terrifying light exploded from my eyes.

In that instant, an overwhelming pressure burst out from my broken body, one that no so-called lowly Omega should ever possess.

It was the pressure of a high-ranking bloodline.

Silas was stunned by the sudden force. His movement slowed for just a split second.

That single moment was enough. I rushed to the foot of the altar steps.

I stared straight at the werewolf seated above everyone else, my voice hoarse but ringing clearly through every corner of the space.

"Ronan, you keep calling me a traitor. You keep saying I'm a fake. You keep saying Michelle is your fated mate, that she carries pure Alpha blood."

I let out a broken laugh and pointed at the so-called wound on Michelle's pale neck.

"Did you ever stop to think about this? If she really carries pure Alpha blood, why can't a simple silver weapon wound heal? Why would it get inflamed and rot? Why does she have to keep hiding it under her collar?"

Michelle's face changed instantly. She screamed, "Shut up, you filthy Omega! Ronan, kill her now! She's insulting you!"

Ronan frowned. Even he seemed to sense that her reaction was too extreme. Still, he pulled her closer and looked at me coldly.

"Lana, why are you still trying to argue at this point? Even if Michelle's wound hasn't healed, bloodline verification isn't something someone with your low-born bloodline can ever understand."

"Bloodline?"

I laughed as if I had just heard the biggest joke in the world. Tears spilled out as the movement tore at my wounds, pain ripping through me.

"Ronan, you're so blind. Did it ever cross your mind that the she-wolf you treasure so dearly might be the real fraud? That she's the one who stole my bloodline and claimed it as her own?"

The entire altar fell silent.

Everyone stared at me as if I had gone insane.

"She's lost it…"

"She actually called our Luna a fake!"

Ronan's patience finally snapped. Killing intent flashed in his eyes as he raised his hand, his fingers transforming into razor-sharp claws.

"Since you're so eager to die, I'll grant your wish.

"Die, Lana."

The claws tore through the air, carrying pure destruction as they lunged toward me.

Just as they were about to rip me apart, I suddenly reached up and tore open my already shredded collar.

"Open your eyes and look carefully!"

Boom!

A blinding pillar of silver light erupted from my body without warning, smashing straight through Ronan's wolf flames and shooting into the sky.

This wasn't ordinary wolf power.

It was pure, vast Alpha power, the kind that would force all things to bow.

The dark, oppressive blood-moon sky was instantly torn apart. The clouds parted, unveiling a vast, pristine full moon, its phantom form slowly taking shape behind me.

At the same time, on my pale, slender neck, a complete and intricate bloodline mark surfaced, flowing with silver light.

It was perfect, flawless, and sacred beyond defilement.

The moment the bloodline awakened, every wound on my body healed instantly.

Compared to Michelle's swollen, festering scar, the difference was laughable.

Wherever the light spread, every wolf on the altar felt it, including Silas, the guards who had just beaten me, and the old elders. All of them trembled deep in their souls.

That was the power of the bloodline.

Thud!

Thud!

One by one, pack members collapsed to their knees, shaking uncontrollably.

I stood at the center of the light. My wounds closed before their eyes, and my once-dull gaze turned into brilliant silver.

I looked at Ronan, frozen in shock, then turned to Michelle, whose face was pale as a corpse. A cold smile curved my lips.

"Ronan, weren't you talking about a sacrifice?

"Tell me. Do you dare sacrifice me?"