When I Hacked the Snow Prince

　　My name is Caitlyn. I was once the Alpha heir of the Fang Pack, a proud werewolf family that thrived in the secluded mountains, far from human sight. Life in a pack was simple but structured. Everyone had their role, and the pack came before anything else.

Caitlyn's POV

"Caitlyn! You should be in the kitchen right now, not in the basement! Are you trying to slack off again?"

Judy's hoarse voice cut through the house. I sighed, pushing myself off the creaky old spring bed.

She is the beta female of the Fang Pack and my nightmare.

My name is Caitlyn Hill, and I'm the omega of the Fang Pack.

A year ago, I was the sole alpha heir in the Pack.

"Caitlyn!" Judy urged again.

"Coming!" I called back.

I looked at myself in the mirror. My golden-brown hair was hidden under a baseball cap, and my sapphire blue eyes were dull with exhaustion.

A high nose and lips could be tempting, but all of it was buried under layers of coal dust from the basement.

I did this on purpose; beauty only brings more trouble.

In the kitchen, I was preparing breakfast for today: toast and eggs.

Judy swung her cane and hit hard on my arm. "Stop slacking! Christmas is just a few months away, and we have too much to prepare!"

I lowered my head obediently to avoid more beatings.

"Where's Beth?" a man's voice came from the doorway. My body went rigid.

It was Jason—my ex-fiancé, my first mate.

I remembered how he used to look at me under the silver moonlight, standing by the bonfire in the forest, swearing to me, "Caitlyn, you'll be my lover. I will love only you."

But later, I was drugged by my best friend Beth and ended up in bed with a stranger, all witnessed by Jason.

He rejected me, and I couldn't forget it. He wouldn't listen to my explanations and firmly said, "I, Jason Henry, reject you, Caitlyn Hill, as my mate."

My heart shattered, a wolf howled inside me, and I could feel her sadness and despair.

I endured the pain as best I could and responded to his rejection.

After the rejection, I didn't experience any werewolf symptoms—the burning pain, the threat of death.

It was strange. After a brief wave of heartbreak, my wolf and I seemed to return to normal, as though the pain had never been there.

But the next day, my parents were brutally killed by enemies, and Beth's father took advantage of the situation to become the new alpha of the Fang Pack.

Everything happened so fast like it had all been planned from the start.

When I realized what had happened, Beth was already engaged to Jason. To my shock, Jason's second mate turned out to be Beth?!

As for me, I felt nothing but bitter irony. Beth stood in front of me, looking down from her position. "Caitlyn, I won't drive you out of the Pack. I'll take care of you, but your abilities are too weak. You can only stay here as an omega."

I had just come of age, and the painful process of transformation had taken its toll on me. My wolf was still weak. If they threw me out, I wouldn't know how to survive.

But staying wasn't much better.

They withheld all my "wages," and I had nothing but leftover bread to eat every day.

"I told you! I will never marry her! My fiancé is only Jason!" Beth's sharp voice broke through the quiet of the study. When she saw Jason, her anger turned to surprise, and she jumped into his arms like a lively rabbit.

I turned away, pretending not to see any of it.

It had been a year, but the pain still lingered. My fiancé married my best friend.

I handed Beth the toast and eggs, and she smiled sweetly at me. "Thank you."

Then, lowering her voice, she added, "Covering up your beauty was the right choice, Caitlyn. You know, I care a lot about your past with Jason."

I nodded and said nothing.

Alpha Joseph also came to the table; he was Beth's father.

At the dining table, they argued again while I sat on the utility room staircase, nibbling dry bread and looking at the book in my hands.

"Beth, you should have listened to me! "

"Sorry, Joseph. Beth is my fiancée. She should marry me."

"But this is a blood oath!" Joseph slammed his fist on the table, his voice heavy with frustration.

A vow sealed in blood—those who break it will die.

Silence hung in the air.

I strained to hear and caught Beth's words: "That man shouldn't be me either!"

The rest of her words faded into silence.

After breakfast, Joseph instructed me to go to the study.

Beth stood nearby, her golden curls cascading down, her chin held high like a proud swan.

Joseph spoke, "Caitlyn, you should know that without us, you would have been killed by the enemy's Pack or become their slave. It was at Beth's request that we took you in. You should remember our kindness."

I remained silent. If being treated as an omega and having my parents' Pack taken away was considered kindness...

Beth looked down at me, "Now, here's your chance to repay that kindness—marry that sickly rogue!"

"Then you won't have any thoughts about Jason anymore!"

Oh, Beth probably didn't know. After Jason rejected me, I had no more thoughts of him. I didn't want to experience the feeling of not being trusted as a mate again!

My wolf roared angrily inside me, small yet fierce, despising these arranged circumstances and aching for freedom and true love.

Quiet!

I told her.

I looked at Beth, "I agree to marry him."

I didn't want to marry a man I didn't love, especially a rogue who might stink, lose control, or turn violent.

But I wasn't afraid!

If I could escape from here!

Caitlyn's POV

Soon, that day arrived.

I wore a simple white linen dress, the only half-decent outfit I had, as the rest of my clothes had become worn and faded from washing. 

After all, I didn't have a fancy wedding gown.

For the first time in a year, I wiped away the coal dust from my face and revealed my true self!

I sat in the dark, damp basement, waiting for the strange man.

I have a mixed feeling. Leaving this place was a relief, but I still hadn't uncovered the truth behind my parents' deaths.

I didn't believe it was an accident!

And I had no idea what fate would bring me next.

I gently touched the relic left by my mother—a moonstone necklace. "Moon Goddess, am I making the right choice?"

"Caitlyn! You should be ready!" Judy shouted as she pushed open the iron door, letting light into the small, gloomy room.

As I stepped into the hall, I finally saw the man.

He sat in a wheelchair, his legs disabled, wearing a mask that covered most of his face. But even behind the mask, his pale lips showed his weakness.

He looked like he had been sick for a long time and much weaker than other healthy werewolves.

He was speaking with Joseph, his words occasionally interrupted by harsh coughing.

"Caitlyn?" Jason called me from the side, and I turned to find him looking at me, surprised. His face quickly shifted into a frown. "So, you've given up on yourself to marry him? A rogue?"

I frowned, keeping my tone indifferent. "I'm sorry, I don't understand what you mean, Jason."

"Even if you reject me and I refuse you, you shouldn't degrade yourself like this! I heard from Beth that you begged the alpha to marry him."

I couldn't help but laugh, "Do you think I have the right to refuse? I'm the former alpha's daughter of the Fang Pack. If I were to refuse the current alpha, Joseph would agree!"

Ha, did you hear that? My ex-mate had such a ridiculous idea, always believing Beth without giving me an ounce of trust.

With nothing but a few lies from Beth, Jason had already convinced himself that I begged to marry a ROGUE.

Jason's shock turned to disgust, "Beth was right. You’re nothing but a whore, hopping from one bed to another for a purpose."

The words hit harder than I wanted to admit. Even though we had severed ties, hearing such insults still made my heart ache.

"Darling," Beth's sweet voice came over. She leaned against Jason like a boneless shrimp, her hazel eyes gleaming with pride. She put on that fake, saccharine tone, "You don't need to persuade Caitlyn anymore. I've tried to advise her, but she seems determined to marry that ROGUE."

"I can't believe someone like you was once my mate," Jason's face turned cold, he glared at me fiercely before turning and walking away.

Once they were gone, Beth's usual sharp, mocking demeanor took over as she smirked at me: "Did you see that? This is the man you're about to marry. He wears a mask because his face has been disfigured into a monster, and when he was driven out of the tribe, the alpha broke his legs."

"Haha, this is the destiny that suits you, Caitlyn. You should marry a crippled monster! Instead of fantasizing about Jason!"

I turned to her, she looked surprised, then jealous. I knew she always hated the way I looked, and she gritted her teeth, lowering her voice, "You should cover up your ugly face."