Chapter 1

The moment I saw that familiar list, I jolted awake.

The suffocating feeling of drowning and the soul-burning pain of wolfsbane were still etched deep within my wolf spirit.

Inside my mind, my wolf struggled wildly, as if it hadn't escaped that death by drowning. Low, panicked growls echoed through my consciousness.

Then I heard my dad's deep and authoritative voice. It was unmistakably that of the Alpha of Obsidian Pack.

"Lana, you've turned eighteen. Today, you'll choose one of these nine werewolf warriors to be your mate at the marking ceremony."

That was when it hit me. By the grace of the Moon Goddess, I had been reborn.

I took the list from him without hesitation, picked up a pen, and crossed out the name 'Simon' with force.

My dad was stunned. "Lana, are you sure you didn't make a mistake? You've liked Simon since you were a pup. Why would you cross him out? Wait. I'll have someone prepare a new list–"

I shook my head. My voice was calm but firm. "No, Dad. I didn't make a mistake. I'm not choosing Simon. I'm choosing Keith."

In my mind, I saw the look on Keith Lloyd's face after I died in my previous life. I also saw his unbearable grief and heard the howl he let out after shifting into his wolf form. It had pierced straight through my soul.

Seeing how determined I was, my dad fell silent for a moment before nodding.

He told me not to announce my choice yet. It would be revealed at the marking ceremony in three days.

The moment I stepped out past the pack's boundary, I ran straight into Simon Eaton in Moonlit Forest.

Leah Lewis was with him.

The moment she saw me, she trembled and hid behind Simon.

Simon immediately pulled her protectively in front of him. His voice was deep and reassuring. "Don't be afraid, Leah. With me here, no one in this pack would dare mistreat you."

He then shot me a vicious glare. His eyes flashed faint green the way a werewolf would on the verge of shifting.

"Lana, even if Leah is just an Omega, you don't get to mistreat her like this."

Leah placed her bruised, scraped hand on Simon's arm. She put on a pitiful expression with practiced ease.

"Simon, don't blame Lana. I'm of a low status. Washing bloodstained clothes for the future Luna is nothing."

I froze for a second. I then sneered on the inside.

I had never ordered Leah to wash anything.

Before I could even speak, Simon bared his fangs at me and growled.

"Listen carefully, Lana. Even if you use your privilege of the Alpha's daughter to force me to be your mate, my wolf and I will only find you repelling. I won't touch you."

He then gently stroked Leah's hand.

"Leah, you may be an Omega, but you're not beneath anyone. You're purer than the shewolf with a rotten heart."

I felt a sharp ache in my chest.

Be it this life or the past, he had never believed me.

Just then, a foul rogue scent burst from the shadows of the forest.

A stranger lunged at me with a gleaming silver blade.

I gasped and instinctively stepped back.

Simon reacted fast. He ran forward, blocked the attack, and kicked the assassin's ribs in. The blade was sent flying.

But at that exact moment, Leah let out a scream and collapsed to the ground.

Another rogue, who was hiding in ambush, had slashed her leg with a wolfsbane-coated dagger. Black smoke rose from the wound.

Simon hesitated for a split second, but when he heard Leah cry out, he immediately released the rogue and ran to her side. He pulled her tightly into his arms.

Watching that made my heart go cold completely.

The rogue saw that I was unprotected. He scrambled to his feet and lunged at me again with the silver blade.

Just as the blade was about to pierce my chest, a massive black wolf appeared before me.

With a deafening roar, it slammed the rogue away with a single swipe.

I opened my eyes and looked past the dust in the air.

It was Keith.

His wolf eyes burned with murderous intent as he stood before me like an immovable wall.