Prologue

Ersa

“Open your mouth, Ersa.” His voice was low, commanding, leaving no room for hesitation. I parted my lips, granting him the access he sought, unable to defy him even if I wanted to.

How had I ended up here, caught in a moment I never imagined for myself?

I’d always been a pushover. Not out of kindness, but because I hated the thought of disappointing anyone. Maybe I was just a people pleaser. Or maybe a coward who avoided conflict at all costs.

But really, how could a werewolf act like such a puppy?

“I really like him, Ersa.”

“I know.” I gave her a small smile, the kind that felt more like surrender than comfort. Was it my turn again, to step aside? I liked Conan too, but were my feelings strong enough to risk our friendship? The answer was obvious.

“Then...if he chooses you tonight, would you reject him?” she asked, her eyes wide and innocent, as if her question wasn’t cruel at all.

I hesitated, then shook my head. “I can’t do that. Not in front of the pack.”

Her expression shifted, and for the first time, I realized how easily she could cast me as the villain in her story.

I wasn’t naive. I knew what we had wasn’t real friendship. Denise gained something by staying close to me, nothing more.

Was it stupidity, letting her use me for her own gain? No. Stupidity would be fighting back and thinking I could win. This… this was strategy.

Because Denise wasn’t just trouble—she was a storm given flesh. And if you stood in her path, she didn’t pass by… she tore through.

“But…” I drew in a breath, steadying my resolve. “What I can do is not show up at the Calling.”

The Bondfire Calling. Unlike other packs, ours still honors the day of choosing, born from the first bond between Beta Gaven and the Dew Goddess Herse, who once walked among us in disguise. They were the first true mates.

Herse gave up eternity to live as a wolf, trading divinity for a mortal life at Gaven’s side. That’s the kind of bond I’ve always dreamed of, one worth sacrificing everything for.

“You’ll do that? For me?” Deni’s eyes sparkled with wonder, but I knew better. What she really wanted was for me to disappear from the picture completely.

“Yes. Anything for a friend,” I said, forcing a smile as I nodded.

Conan… he was no ordinary he-wolf. Stronger than most Betas, with looks people often claimed rivaled the Alpha himself, though I had never met the Alpha to know for sure. To me, he was more than strength or beauty. He was my childhood friend, the boy I had once promised to marry.

But promises meant little when weighed against tradition. Pairings could only be made during the Calling.

And if I wasn’t there, it would mean a lifetime of being alone. For she-wolves, the age of twenty-one brought only one chance. One night to be chosen, or to be left behind forever.

“But… that would mean you’ll be alone.” Deni tilted her head, her voice lined with concern, though I knew better. She acted as if she cared, but her eyes gave her away.

“It doesn’t bother me to be alone.”

The truth was, I had always been alone. I never knew my parents. All I had was the story Aunt Vesy, Conan’s mother, used to tell me. She said my parents were descendants of Erza, the daughter of Beta Gaven himself. It was Erza who whispered to her in a dream, begging her to protect her bloodline.

But if Erza truly watched over me, why had she never whispered to me?

Later, when I grew old enough, I left Conan’s home so I wouldn’t trouble his family any longer. They were already a big family.

“Alright then, if you say so.” Deni’s smile brightened as if I had just handed her a gift. “I better prepare for the Calling. Promise me you won’t show up.”

She waved cheerfully, almost skipping as she left me sitting beneath the Dew Pine Tree, while I stayed behind, swallowing the ache of a promise that might cost me everything.

I reached out and touched one of its leaves. The dew clung there as it always did, droplets that never seemed to fade. They were said to be the Goddess Herse’s gift to our pack, a symbol of her sacrifice, a promise of new beginnings.

“Is there truly no one for me, Goddess?” I whispered, brushing a droplet onto my fingertip. It slipped away almost instantly, rolling back to its place on the leaf, as if it belonged there more than it ever would with me.

Night fell, but still I remained beneath the towering tree. My eyes lifted to the pale glow of the moon, the underworld’s lantern, cold and distant.

“It’s almost the end,” I murmured, my voice catching in the quiet. The Calling was drawing near. And with it, my fate.

“Are you Ersa Soltharic?”

The sudden voice in the darkness jolted me to my feet. When the speaker stepped into the wash of moonlight, my breath caught. The Beta.

“H-how may I help you, Beta?” I stammered, bowing quickly out of respect.

His expression was unreadable as he spoke. “Because of your absence at the Bondfire Calling, you are to join three other women in the Second Calling.”

My heart dropped. I froze, shaking my head as the words sank in. No. This couldn’t be happening.

The Second Calling. To others, it was a great honor, the chance to be chosen as the pack’s Luna. The Alpha alone had the authority to call for it.

But to me, it wasn’t a ceremony. It was a contest. A brutal test to see which she-wolf could outshine the rest—in beauty, in skill, in leadership, and even in the most intimate of performances.

“No,” I whispered, backing away.