Chapter 3

My body had begun to show obvious signs of decay.

I watched as wild dogs tore at my body, my arms and legs a bloody, mangled mess.

To think I, who had always prized beauty, once cared so much about my appearance.

I had even personally helped design the gown for the Luna coronation.

I had to be the most beautiful one, to ensure Fenrir's eyes were only for me.

I just never imagined I would die in such an ugly way.

Today, Fenrir's search order was for the southern valley.

But suddenly, the command center had a visitor. It was Tessa's brother, Sean.

I didn't understand how a waste of space like him could even set foot in the pack's command center.

After all, even I knew that Tessa's long-lost biological brother was a notorious rogue who had done nothing but cause trouble.

His presence here meant trouble.

But I had to admire Tessa's cleverness. For three days, she had used every trick in the book to keep Fenrir from searching the site himself.

She knew that if his mate bond got too close to me, he would surely sense that something was wrong.

"I hear Selene is missing?" Sean asked, feigning concern.

"I was traveling outside and ran into some rogues. They said they saw a she-wolf near the abandoned mines to the east."

"Could it be Selene?"

The news clearly caught Fenrir's attention. He shot his head up.

"The east? Are you sure?"

"Not entirely, but it's a lead. It's worth checking out," Sean nodded.

And so, the search party that should have been scouring the cliffs was diverted in the opposite direction by Sean's false intel.

My soul could only watch helplessly as they moved farther and farther away.

I silently cursed his stupidity, but no one could hear me.

Tessa whispered in Sean's ear, "Well done, brother."

"Keep distracting them. We can't let them find that bitch's body."

Sean gave a sinister smile. "Don't worry. I have my ways."

He was being played, and he couldn't even see it.

It was only just before I fell that I learned how much Tessa hated me.

"My sister, you're so careless."

Her voice was as gentle as a spring breeze, her hand stroking my back.

An intimate, comforting gesture between sisters.

The moment I let my guard down, her lips drew close to my ear.

Her voice suddenly turned venomous and cruel.

"Just die. The pack doesn't need a weak Luna."

That push, she'd put all her strength into it.

I had no time to react before I was plunging into the abyss.

And her voice still echoed in my ears:

"You'd better just die here... The place by Fenrir's side was always meant to be mine."

So from the very beginning, she had wanted me dead.

While spouting words of sisterly affection, she had viciously pushed me off the cliff. Then, she found a suitable spot on the training grounds to lie down.

After making sure no one was around, she quickly drew a small dagger from her boot.

Without a moment's hesitation, she carved a deep gash in her own arm.

Blood gushed out instantly.

She gritted her teeth, enduring the pain, and squeezed the wound to make it bleed even more.

Then, she threw the dagger off the cliff, destroying the evidence.

She tore her clothes, smeared dirt on her face, and messed up her hair.

Once everything was ready, she began to scream for help.

By the time Fenrir rushed over via mind-link, Tessa was lying there weakly, and I was already dead at the bottom of the cliff, poisoned by wolfsbane.

Tessa told Fenrir she didn't know where I'd gone, that we had gotten separated during training.

And just like that, Fenrir was lured back to the pack to tend to her, leaving my body to lie alone at the base of the cliff.

I was silently consumed by the lethal poison until every last breath of life was gone.

What was I thinking, in those last moments before death?

I thought of the day my father first brought Tessa home, telling me that from then on, I had a sister.

I thought of the many happy times Tessa and I had shared.

I also thought of that terrible war, where Fenrir held me tightly, telling me not to be afraid.

But back then, what I feared most wasn't losing someone I loved, but being alone.

Ever since I watched my parents die in the pack war, I'd had an indescribable fear of being alone.

But at that time, Fenrir was still there for me.

From that day on, he became the person I trusted most in the world, aside from my parents. My mate.

That was why I had joined them for this wilderness training.

I wanted to be by Fenrir's side as much as possible.

Even with Tessa there, I wanted to try to connect with him.

I never thought I would lose my life in the depths of a ravine.

Remembering the despair of my final moments, my soul couldn't help but tremble.

The physical agony and mental torment rushed back all at once.

For a full day, the search party scoured the eastern mines, coming up with nothing.

Fenrir's mood grew agitated. The faintness of the mate bond made him restless.

"Why? Why can't they find her?" he paced anxiously in the command center.

"Where in the world did she go?"

Three days. It was longer than any of my previous tantrums had ever lasted. He was done waiting for me to come back.

Tessa gently handed him a cup of hot tea. "Fenrir, you haven't rested properly in three days."

"If you keep this up, even if you find my sister, you won't have the strength to care for her."

"I'm not tired," Fenrir waved her off. "Selene might have run off to another pack this time. She still isn't back."

At this point, my corpse was barely intact. Where could I have possibly run to?

But that hardly mattered anymore. When the mate bond finally severed, he would find out sooner or later.

I suddenly found myself wondering: if he knew the truth, how would he react?

Would he feel any regret?