Chapter 1 I Am Dying

Aeris' POV

"Aeris, you're on the verge of death."

I froze the moment I pushed open the door to the examination room. I felt a knot in my stiff neck as I turned to look at Blake Rowe in a daze.

His voice was soft and choked up with grief. "You've contracted Soul Decay. Your soul is weakening bit by bit. Normally, it's not a deadly illness. But without a wolf to resist its corrosion, and without the ability to heal yourself… You'll die if this goes on."

As he said that, I saw how anguished he looked. Even his eyes were bloodshot.

Blake was my senior, or rather, he once was. We used to study under the same teacher, back before I abandoned my talents for love. Blake was the liveliest and the most approachable of us all. Back then, he always teased me and called me "genius".

I had never seen him wear such a grave and painful expression.

My throat tightened when I heard his words, and my fingers began to tremble. Even though I had braced myself, my brain stopped functioning, leaving only the last words he had said echoing in my mind. My whole body was as still as a statue, absolutely unmoving as I stood frozen.

"I'm going to die." That was the only thought I had.

Blake's voice reached me from somewhere far away. I blinked once. His face looked blurry, and I couldn't quite make out his features. But the tone of his voice carried the somber weight when one spoke of death.

"Listen to me, Aeris. You need to be admitted for immediate treatment," Blake said.

I knew exactly how severe my illness was. Without a wolf, my frail body grew weaker by the day. At first, it was only fatigue and drowsiness. But last month, I vomited blood in the bathroom.

I hadn't told anyone. I rinsed my mouth and went back to caring for my gravely ill father, James Brown. He had been severely injured in a fight with Rogues. A silver blade had pierced through almost his entire chest cavity.

Since then, he had been in a coma. Just keeping him alive cost me six figures every month, and I had to stay by his side at the hospital.

I blinked again, and tears slid down the corners of my eyes. Pretending to tuck my hair, I secretly wiped them away to preserve what little dignity I had left.

My lips moved, but only after a long while did I have the strength to utter a response. "How much longer can I live?"

I had once been a healer myself, so I knew too well what the end stage of Soul Decay entailed. I would grow weaker, vomit blood, and lose all sensation. My soul would fade away in prolonged agony. But in the end, none of it mattered anymore.

"Six months to a year. But I'll do everything I can to save you. Believe me, alright? You need to begin a course of treatment right away. Let's at least see how—"

I cut him off, "I won't go for treatment."

"What?" Blake exclaimed in disbelief.

He rushed to my side and pleaded desperately, "Listen to me, Aeris. You're only in your 20s. You're still so young…"

But I interrupted him again, only to thank him sincerely. "Thank you, Blake. Truly. I know what I'll be facing. Please keep my illness a secret and take care of my dad for me."

I felt a stinging sensation in my nose. I discreetly took a deep breath to stop myself from crying.

I continued pleading, "You know my family is already overwhelmed. I don't want them to suffer any more because of me."

This time, Blake fell silent for a long time. Finally, he sighed heavily.

I knew he understood my dilemma. Dad's illness had crushed the Browns. The corners of Blake's eyes reddened as he pulled out a vial from the medicine cabinet. The liquid inside was dark green and carried a bitter smell.

"If it gets unbearable, drink this. It won't heal you, but it'll make you feel better," Blake offered.

After thanking him, I left the hospital.

I didn't go home. I wandered the streets instead.

Sadly, I didn't know where to go. Did I have a home? Was the house where I lived alone really a home?

My mate, Caius Everett, hadn't come back for a year. Though we lived in the same territory, we hardly ever saw each other.

At some point, heavy rain began to fall. I wiped my face, my body trembling in the cold.

Caius was the Alpha of the Darkclaw pack. We had been mates for three years. We shared many happy memories in our first year together. He loved me back then. Well, I guess he did once upon a time. At least up until last year, we were going to have a pup together.

I thought our happiness would last forever.

But his first love, Freya Brooks, returned to the Darkclaw pack while being heavily pregnant one year ago. From that day onward, everything changed.

I could feel Caius' heart drifting between me and her, and the pain was unbearable. But for my unborn pup, I held on to our mate bond.

Unfortunately, an accident happened. Freya and I both fell into the water. Caius jumped in to save her first. I nearly drowned, and as a result, I lost our pup.

She died in my womb.

Seven days after my miscarriage, Caius asked to sever our mate bond. I thought it was only because we were both grieving the pup we'd never met. I refused, clinging to the hope that the pain would pass. I believed that if I persisted, he would see me again.

But maybe I was wrong.

Now, with death looming over me, everything I had fought for in this love had lost all meaning.

"Maybe… Maybe he would still care?" I thought.

A faint sense of hope arose in my heart. I hoped that Caius would at least agree to see me if he heard that I was terminally ill.

So, I dialed his number.

"I—" I wanted to say I was sick.

But I had barely started speaking when his impatient voice cut me off, "Haven't I made myself clear? Don't contact me unless you want to talk about our mate bond severance."

He had said the same thing a year ago. A bitter ache caught in my throat. The courage I had gathered crumbled instantly.

Caius didn't care at all. Telling him about my condition was pointless. If he knew I was dying, he would probably feel glad that he would be free from me.

Then, I heard a woman's familiar voice—it was Freya.

"Cai, it's time for our pup's checkup."

Our pup?

I froze. I had once caught a glimpse of that boy pup named Zack.

If Zack was Caius and Freya's pup, then what about mine? She should have been born too. She should have been running around just like Zack. But she was only an unformed embryo, and she was forced to leave before ever seeing this world because of one accident.

As I thought of her, I burst into tears uncontrollably. My chest ached so much that I could hardly breathe.

I knew it was all over. My pup, my mate, my family… Everything.

I parted my lips and took in a deep breath to hide my sobs. Maybe no one ever cared about my feelings anyway.

"Come home, Caius. I agree to the bond severance."