Chapter 3

Another line of pack members walked in at that moment.

In their hands were moonflowers, carved silver vases, and cupcakes made with morning dew and berries.

Every single item was something Layla loved.

Seraphina stared at the scene, feeling as if an invisible hand had clenched around her heart.

What Damien prepared for Layla far surpassed what he had done for her during their own bonding ceremony.

"Damien…" Seraphina looked at him, her voice trembling slightly. "Care to explain?"

Damien opened his mouth but didn't speak.

Layla suddenly reached out toward Seraphina, her voice choking up and her eyes turning red.

"Sera, this is all my fault. I just felt like I didn't have much time left and wanted to know what it felt like to be a real mate. That's why I begged Damien to play along and act it out with me.

"I swear I won't steal him from you. The moment the ceremony ends, I'll give him back to you. Alright?"

She swayed as she spoke, looking like she was about to collapse.

At that, both Damien and Leo looked alarmed.

"Layla, are you okay? You don't look well."

"Aunt Layla, be careful. Nothing matters more than your health."

Just then, Bryan and Miriam walked in.

Seeing Layla with red eyes, Miriam rushed forward in distress. "Layla, what's wrong?"

Bryan shot Seraphina a cold look and stepped forward without hesitation.

A sharp crack echoed as his palm collided with her face.

"Seraphina, why did you push Layla over the edge again? You know she's weak, so why make her upset?"

The blow was brutally hard. Seraphina stumbled and fell to the ground.

Only Blaze rushed over to her side, licking her burning cheek and using its warm life force to ease the pain.

Everyone else gathered around Layla instead.

Her parents, her mate, her son.

Seraphina looked across all of them and finally let out a self-mocking smile.

It didn't matter. Soon, she would forget them all, and she would never appear before them again to bother them.

Seraphina pressed a hand to her cheek and slowly stood up. "Blaze, let's go."

Damien froze, a sudden and inexplicable sense of unease rising in his chest.

He released Layla's hand and called out, "Sera…"

Layla immediately collapsed into his arms. "Damien, it hurts so much…"

Damien's expression tightened. Without hesitation, he lifted her and rushed toward her room.

Bryan, Miriam, and Leo hurried after him.

Seraphina didn't look back at their panic. She no longer cared.

When she left, she would let Damien truly become Layla's mate, and Leo would become Layla's son.

Back at Afterglow Lodge, half of Seraphina's face was already swollen.

She channeled the power in her body to reduce the swelling, then gently touched Blaze beside her.

"Does it still hurt where Leo hit you?"

Blaze shook its head, sadness shining clearly in its eyes.

Seraphina forced a small smile. "Are you feeling sorry for me? It's fine. I'm used to it."

She had lived like this for almost 100 years.

Even the deepest wounds eventually went numb.

When night fell, Damien returned.

Seeing Seraphina and Blaze leaning against each other, he frowned, but still softened his tone as he stepped closer.

"Sera, don't take what happened today to heart. You know Layla is weak, and her emotions are unstable.

"She said holding the bonding ceremony is her only wish. Even if it's fake, she just wants to experience it once. I have to fulfill that for her."

Seraphina quietly watched the man who once swore to protect her for life.

Suddenly, she felt a warmth blooming at her forehead. It was as if the Mooncrest was heating up.

Then she realized she could no longer remember the first time she had ever met Damien.

The Moon Goddess's words echoed again in her mind. "In seven days, this Mooncrest will sever your ties of love and erase your memories."

So the forgetting was happening slowly, little by little.

She was already beginning to lose her memories.

No wonder her heart felt so calm now.

"Sure. I don't mind."

She did not make a scene, yet Damien looked even more unsettled.

"The ceremony is just for show. It's not real."

Seraphina curled her lips faintly. "Might as well go all the way. Let's go to the Promise Stone and sever our mate bond."

Damien went rigid. "You want to sever our mate bond?"

"After your ceremony with Layla is finished, and after her condition improves, we can go back to Promise Stone and reestablish the bond," Seraphina said lightly. "We'll do it for Layla. That would make her happier, wouldn't it?"

Damien hesitated. His instincts told him this was unnecessary.

But when he thought of Layla, he took Seraphina's hand. "I knew you still cared about Layla. Does it still hurt where Dad hit you?"

"It doesn't," Seraphina replied quietly.

The pain they caused her no longer reached her heart at all.