Chapter 1

After my physical examination, I'm about to leave the pack infirmary located in my cousin's territory when a heavily made-up healer suddenly grabs my arm.

She hisses, "Stop right there! You think you can break something in the infirmary and just run away? No way!"

I look at her unfamiliar face and blink, feeling utterly confused. "What did I break?"

She points to the crystal potion bottles on the shelves and wrinkles her nose exaggeratedly.

"You reek, and your stench has contaminated all the potions, making them unusable! Alpha Xander bought these at a high cost, and all of it is worth 500 thousand dollars. There's also compensation for causing me emotional distress—that's another 200 thousand.

"Altogether, that's 700 thousand dollars. Will you pay by cash or card?"

My scent is a mix of violet and amber. It's noble and cool, like a winter dusk. Of course, not everyone loves this scent, but "contamination"? Please!

I can't fathom why the infirmary in Xander's territory is operating like a scam.

I laugh out of anger and say, "I'm Alpha Xander's cousin. I don't pay a single cent in his territory. If anyone has a problem with that, have Xander come say it to my face."

But the healer only rolls her eyes. "You bitch, trying to use such lowly tricks to get my Alpha's attention? You wish! If you don't pay up today, I'll strip you naked and throw you onto the street so that everyone can smell how foul you are!"

She has no idea who she's threatening.

I take a deep breath and quickly contact my Beta. "Tell Xander—either banish this healer from the pack, or I'll banish him."

...

I had just won a brutal territorial war. My Beta, Braden Jenkins, practically begged me to get a physical examination, so I went.

The central pack infirmary that belonged to the Lighthall pack—which my cousin Xander Smith was the Alpha of—was reputed to be the best on the continent, so, of course, that was where I went.

The medical report showed I was in excellent health. It was just that my wolf had used too much power and needed to rest in slumber for a while.

But who could have guessed that I'd be treated like a pushover here?

"Filthy commoner, stop barking! Pay up now!" The female healer blocked my path, and she looked at me as if I were a rat in the gutter.

"Seven hundred thousand dollars total. I'm telling you, if you're even one cent short, you won't be leaving through this door today!"

A few pack members passing by the door were already drawn in by her loud voice. They perked up their ears and looked over.

Her yelling hurt my ears. I really didn't want to waste time on such a trivial matter, so I directly dialed Xander's number. The phone rang for a long time, but no one answered. Where the hell did that idiot Alpha run off to in broad daylight?

I put away my phone, suppressed my emotions, and met the she-wolf's sharp gaze.

"I'll repeat it once more—I am Xander's cousin.

"For some reason, I can't get through to Xander's phone right now. If you don't believe me, you can use the computer behind you to check the werewolf pack archives. At his coronation ceremony as Alpha of the Lighthall pack, I personally pinned his pack's crest to his chest in front of half the continent."

I thought stating the facts would be enough to shut her up. But reasoning only worked on those who understood reason.

Instead of checking the archives, the she-wolf let out a piercing, shrill laugh. Her nails dug deep into my shoulder, pulling me closer as she whispered in my ear.

"Cousin? Don't make me laugh. I've seen your photo on Alpha Xander's office desk. You even shamelessly tried to seduce my boyfriend right in his office. And now, you dare show up before me while looking for a chance to chat him up? I'll tear you to pieces!"

Huh? Her boyfriend?

I froze up momentarily before taking a closer look at the name tag on her chest that read, "Nina Tucker".

I felt speechless for a second. So, the perfect girlfriend Nina, whom Xander had been hiding and refusing to introduce me to, was this very mean she-wolf before me? I couldn't believe that his taste had actually deteriorated to this point.

At that moment, I finally understood—this wasn't about the 700 thousand dollars. This was clearly a deliberate setup!

Before I could even retort, I heard Nina snap her fingers.

Two guards emerged from the shadows of the hallway, burly and expressionless.

"Nothing more to say? Good. Since a filthy commoner like you can't pay for the potions you contaminated, we'll handle it the old-fashioned way," Nina said menacingly.

One of the guards raised silver shackles, while the other roughly grabbed my wrist.

"How dare you!" My instinct for survival instantly erupted, and I subconsciously tried to release my Alpha Female aura. But my wolf was still deep in slumber, showing no response whatsoever.

A moment later, they had me tightly bound. They hoisted me up and dragged me straight to the waste room, filled with medical waste and potion residue. The door closed with a heavy thud, cutting off all light from the outside and leaving only a nauseating stench.