Chapter 7 A Name

Once it was clear that every guest had taken their seat, the whole room fell silent at Marcus’s signal.

“Very well, everyone, bear witness to the selection of the Alpha candidate, who shall stand beside my granddaughter Scarlett for all her days as her eternal mate, blessed by the Moon Goddess herself!” Marcus’s voice boomed, echoing to every corner of the chamber.

The dignified old man then led Scarlett up the high dais, toward the sacred stone table that stood next to a towering statue of the Moon Goddess, radiating a mesmerizing, magical aura.

Scarlett knelt at the very center of the altar circle, directly beneath the goddess’s watchful form. Marcus and the elders surrounded her, scattering silver flower petals over her head while chanting the invocation to the Moon Goddess.

Back then she had been so foolish and reckless, foolish enough to try to bend fate to her will. Whatever name had been written on that sacred scroll, she had planned to change it to Levi Ashbourne using forbidden magic the moment the parchment passed into her hands.

But now, in this second life, everything had changed. Things had been different from the very second she opened her eyes again.

‘Will the same name appear once more?’

Damian Carrington!

Before she knew it, that name had etched itself deep into her mind, turning into a sincere prayer she repeated endlessly, over and over.

Just then, the ritual reached its climax. The elders’ chants blended with a blinding white light that streamed down from the heavens, wrapping around the scroll resting on the stone table. The hall hummed with suppressed gasps as powerful waves of magic surged through the air.

Scarlett rose from her knees and walked slowly toward the altar table, fighting to keep her hands from trembling all the way to her fingertips. A split second before her fingers could touch the scroll hovering in midair, Levi’s cold voice cut straight into her mind.

‘It will be my name. Who else would you ever choose, Scarlett? There is no other man you love but me. So I’ll just pretend to accept it when Elder Marcus calls my name.’

Scarlett nearly smiled, yet that smile faded instantly. In this second life, nothing was certain anymore. Her heart pounded hard, suddenly struck by overwhelming fear. What if Levi’s name really is written there right now?

‘What should I do? Should I change it again? Or could it be… he secretly used magic to write his own name onto this scroll too?’

With hands shaking violently, Scarlett gripped the sacred parchment.

‘But I remember it clearly… back then, the name I saw was Damian Carrington. I was the one who changed it, and Grandfather helped me because he knew I was obsessed with Levi…’

“Why do you linger, child? Open the sacred scroll at once,” Elder Adnan commanded, breaking her out of her thoughts.

Scarlett looked from Adnan to the four other elders standing beside him. “Elder Adnan, please forgive me,” she said firmly. “I ask to delay this announcement.”

Boom!

Her words struck like lightning on a clear day. Gasps and wide, shocked eyes swept across the entire hall.

“Are you absolutely certain, Scarlett?” Marcus asked.

Scarlett nodded resolutely. “Yes, Grandfather. Please forgive me.”

“Wait, you cannot do that!” Viviane cut in, pushing her way forward with barely concealed fury. “The result should be announced now! You haven’t even opened it yet, what if someone has already tampered with fate?”

Viviane’s insinuation immediately sparked panic and dark accusations all around.

“She’s right! This delay could spell disaster for our pack!” Levi called out loudly. “If the mate chosen is not the true choice of the Goddess, destruction shall fall upon the Shadowmoon Pack!”

‘Dammit! If she delays this, I won’t get my title as Alpha tonight!’ Levi’s thoughts were loud and clear to Scarlett. ‘After all, I secretly wove my own name into the scroll with magic…’

In an instant, all the puzzle pieces from her past life clicked perfectly into place in Scarlett’s mind.

‘So it was true… Levi also deliberately forged our destiny back then. No wonder he was so arrogant that I would choose him! And with everyone knowing how obsessed I was with him, no one would ever question it.’

Seeing the chaos unfolding, Marcus acted swiftly. He took the sacred scroll back from Scarlett with a commanding motion, causing the parchment to float upward, out of anyone’s reach. Together with the elders, he began chanting a high-level protection spell.

“From this moment forth, this scroll is sealed with absolute silver magic. No power in existence, not even an Alpha King, can break through it. Nothing remains inside but Scarlett’s own heart and the blessing granted to her by the Goddess.” Marcus declared.

A shimmering circle of silver-white energy, marked with intricate patterns, wrapped tightly around the scroll as it hovered once more above the altar. Scarlett looked out across the entire hall with a coldness in her eyes that she had never shown before.

“In exactly seven days’ time, beneath the full moon, I shall open this scroll and bind my betrothal to the one who is truly destined for me.” Scarlett finished, speaking respectfully before everyone present.

Viviane smiled sweetly, but the venom in her thoughts screamed so loudly Scarlett could hear every word.

‘Go ahead and stall for time, you fool. Levi has already marked you with his magic inside that scroll. The moment that bond is formed, your wolf spirit will be shattered, and you will die under a terrible curse, Scarlett!’

Scarlett gave a faint smile, meeting her sister’s scheming gaze while her own mind burned with rage.

‘Keep dreaming, Viviane. In my past life, you both trapped me at my weakest point. But this time… I will make sure you pay for every single drop of my blood and every tear I shed!’