Chapter 6

"I'm not going back," I said instinctively. "She'll find a way to make me disappear tomorrow."

Lucian looked at me. His eyes were full of undisguised disbelief.

In his eyes, Delia was gentle, kind, and knew not to overstep boundaries. My wariness toward her was nothing but unreasonable behavior.

He reached out as if to pull me from the bed.

I instinctively recoiled, and my elbow hit the nightstand beside me.

The thermos on it tipped over. Scalding water and shattered glass came crashing down.

Almost instinctively, Lucian pulled Delia into his arms and turned around to shield her from the hot water and shards of glass.

A shard of glass grazed his cheek, leaving a thin cut.

Bright red blood slid down his pale skin.

I looked at that wound but felt surprisingly calm.

Instinct never lied.

Even if he brought me to the healer's den in the middle of the night, and even if he stayed by my side until morning, the person he protected when danger came was still Delia.

It wasn't me, and it would never be me.

Guards ran in and escorted Lucian, the noble Alpha King, out.

"Go back with Delia. Tomorrow, the marking ceremony will proceed as planned."

Before leaving, he frowned at me as if he'd made a very difficult decision.

Of course, I ignored him.

Soon, the chaotic ward fell silent.

Delia slowly walked up to me. She couldn't hide the delight in her voice.

"Stay away from Lucian.

"The one standing next to him tomorrow will be me. You'd better know your place and disappear."

I raised my hand and slapped her hard.

She covered her face in disbelief and tried to strike back, but I caught her wrist first. "Don't forget this. The chance to be Luna Queen, and Lucian himself, are both trash I threw away.

"If you love picking up what others discard so much, then you can have him."

She was visibly upset. I released her and shoved her aside. "But don't show that expression in front of Lucian.

"After all, when you're not pretending, you look really ugly."

I didn't want to look at her furious expression. After finishing my sentence, I walked out of the ward and slammed the door shut behind me.

No one stopped me.

No one even noticed me.

Everyone's attention was on their precious Alpha King.

The moment I stepped out of the healer's den, my phone screen lit up.

There were two unread messages.

[Your exit visa has been approved.]

[You have received 50 million.]

I stared at those words for a long time and felt an overwhelming sense of joy.

I returned to the pack, took everything my mother had left behind, and put on the moonstone necklace.

I then headed to the neutral zone airport and boarded the plane.

Just before the plane took off, the sky turned bright.

On my phone, I saw a live broadcast of the royal marking ceremony.

A convoy bearing the northern territory's royal emblem entered Graham Pack territory.

At the front, the lead car stopped at the pack center.

Lucian stepped out with a bouquet of white flowers.

He was tall, cool, and strikingly handsome.

Today, he had come to bring his queen to the marking ceremony, but he had no idea that the name on that crown had already been changed.

Through the screen, I watched him walk toward the main house.

He was walking to his poised, proper, and rule-abiding Luna Queen.

He was walking to the marking ceremony he believed would go perfectly.

I didn't watch it until the end.

I had no interest in whether Delia would repeat my past fate or not, and I didn't care what would happen to Lucian, that stubborn man.

All I knew was that I would finally be free.