Chapter 2

Dad frowned, evidently finding my decision a silly one. However, when he realized I was serious about it, he chose to respect my choice.

It was clear he was disappointed in me, though. After all, to him, marrying a zombie, which was the lowest in status among the Otherkin, meant there was no chance of me having any children. There was also the fact that zombies generally couldn't reproduce.

In turn, that meant that Landon would never become the chairman of the Otherkin Alliance.

I knew Dad thought Meredith stood a better chance of making him proud and elevating his status. After all, the werewolves had always been known for their strong reproductive abilities. They were also some of the alliance's most powerful warriors.

"Well, if that's what you want, so be it. Maybe you can ask Meredith for help if life after marriage gets too hard," he said.

But later, when Meredith learned that I'd chosen to marry Landon, she blatantly mocked me. "I heard the zombies are so far gone that they're about to get kicked out of the Otherkin Alliance, Annabelle. They can't even feed themselves. Let's hope you don't starve to death before even getting pregnant!

"Things are the opposite with the Whitefang pack. I heard they're so wealthy that they can afford to add precious herbs even when taking baths. Well, if you're willing to grovel at my feet and beg me, I'll consider giving you some of my leftovers."

She covered her mouth and burst into laughter.

The way she saw it, Alpha Kevin was faithful, loyal, and a passionate partner. More importantly, the Whitefang pack had abundant resources and wealth. She thought those were the reasons I was the first to have a child in our past lives.

However, there was one thing she didn't understand. When humans and werewolves came together, it would take much longer to conceive. Kevin, desperate to have more power, had urgently wanted an heir so he could ascend to the position of the alliance's chairman.

And so, when I'd failed to conceive a pup even after six months together, he'd become completely different. He was nothing like the devoted gentleman everyone thought he was.

Kevin started blaming me for failing to produce a pup. He vented his depression and resentment at not being able to secure the chairman position on me, secretly tormenting me day and night.

But on the outside, he still acted like he loved me deeply. He even told everyone that he didn't care whether or not I was the first to produce an Otherkin heir. He claimed that I wasn't a stepping stone for him to attain greater heights among the Otherkin.

For a moment, everyone was jealous of me for having such a good mate.

In secret, however, I was left hanging in the balance from Kevin's torment and almost died. After all, my death was the only way for him to choose another human woman to be his mate.

It was only until I used a secret art to conceive and help him become the chairman of the Otherkin Alliance that he finally stopped his insane abuse.

I was calmer than ever before when I saw Meredith's mocking smile. I smiled faintly in return and said, "Don't worry about me, Meredith. Landon is a responsible partner, and I doubt I'll regret my decision. I hope you don't, either."

When she saw that I was calm instead of flying off the handle as she'd expected, she felt like a pathetic clown.

After all, in the past, we would start arguing whenever she gloated about something to my face. Then, she would play the victim to garner pity and make people despise me, thinking I was too selfish to care about my sister.

That day, however, her plan failed. That infuriated her, and she swept the pastries off the table to the floor, screaming, "What do you have to be smug about, Annabelle? Landon Zeller is broke and pathetic! He can't even put food on the table!

"I'll be the first to get pregnant and produce an heir! I'll be the chairman's wife! You, on the other hand, will end up begging on the streets for food!"

I didn't want to argue with a lunatic, so I turned and walked away. I focused on preparing for my wedding in three days.

Meredith was right about one thing—the zombies were poor. I was worried they wouldn't even have money to get me a wedding dress, so I decided to prepare my own.

To my surprise, Landon came to me the following night to deliver my wedding gown.

That was my first time seeing him properly. He wasn't as ugly as the rumors made him out to be. He was only rather pale because zombies were nocturnal creatures that only moved around in the night.

He also didn't smell bad. In fact, there was something oddly fragrant about him.

He had a pair of deep green eyes that gleamed like gemstones, and a mole at the corner of his eye accentuated his good looks. He was well-built and had broad shoulders. I could even vaguely make out a toned chest and abs through his white shirt.

Landon opened the box he held. I was instantly captivated by what was inside. It was a green floor-length gown with scales on it that shimmered underneath the moonlight. It looked like a flowing galaxy.

"Annabelle." He sounded so calm that it was as if he were talking to a stranger, not the woman he would soon be marrying. "The best zombie tailor made this gown. Each scale on this was picked from the abyss by all of us.

"This is zombies' first time entering into a marriage alliance with the humans, so it is of great importance to us. If there's anything I've done that doesn't meet your expectations, please let me know immediately."

I finally tore my eyes away from the gown. "Thank you. It's breathtaking, and I love it."

I put the gown back into the box and was about to put it away when Meredith barged into my room, her arm in Kevin's.

"Is that the only gown you have, Annabelle? It doesn't have any diamonds or gems on it at all!" She covered her mouth in feigned shock. "Kevin prepared ten gowns for me, you know. Each one has the most expensive sapphires embroidered on it."

Kevin looked at her, his gaze filled with love and devotion.

Meredith had only heard rumors about Kevin being faithful and devoted. She had no idea how manic he could be when it came to becoming the chairman of the alliance.

I wondered whether he would continue being gentle with her if she failed to conceive.

Landon looked up at Meredith's words. Then, he turned to me and said seriously, "I won't deny that we're struggling now. However, I vow that I, the zombie king, will never betray you in this lifetime. You will be my only queen."

Meredith snorted at that and tightened her grip on Kevin's arm. "That's just lip service. The point here is which one of us will have a child first and help our husbands become the chairman of the Otherkin Alliance."

It seemed the inability to conceive in her past life had traumatized her. She was so obsessed with getting pregnant that she'd already moved in with Kevin. She'd done it the day she'd announced that she was choosing Kevin as her partner.

I smiled, thinking that Meredith and Kevin made a good match. They were equally fervent about being the first to produce an heir.

"Perhaps you should focus on preparing for your wedding instead of staring at my fiance, Meredith. Otherwise, people might think you have ulterior motives," I said.

Then, I held Landon's hand and pulled him away as Meredith and Kevin watched me awkwardly.

Meredith was dumb. Even though she was lucky enough to get a second chance at life, she still firmly believed that having a child was her only path to power.