Independence Werewolf の短編小説 & Face Slapping 小説

I accompany the Luna of the north and my future mother-in-law, Willow Joynes, on a cruise for a vacation. A high-pitched, feminine voice resounds behind us not long after we make our way to the deck. "Who gave you permission to be here? Moonshine is reserved for noble wolves. Rogues have no business being on this cruise ship!" I turn around and see a she-wolf clad in a tailored gown and dazzling jewelry. She marches toward us and lets out a scoff after she scrutinizes Willow’s plain clothes and mine. "Whose maids are you? Or did you sneak onto the ship? How repulsive. The Moon Goddess blessed this part of the sea, and yet it's been tainted with the stench of poverty that both of you reek of." My expression immediately turns cold. "Moonshine is open to all invited patrons," I say. "If you don't like looking at other wolves, you should buy your own cruise ship." The she-wolf's expression darkens. She points an accusing finger at me and exclaims, "Do you have any idea who you're speaking to, you bitch? I'm Beatrice Quillo, and my mate is the future Alpha of the north! This entire stretch of sea is his territory. The luxury suite on this ship is open only to me! "Get on your knees and grovel for my forgiveness right now. If you don't, I'll teach you the consequences of getting on my bad side." Willow and I frown as we exchange glances. It's true that this part of the sea belongs to the north. However, the future Alpha of the north, Julian Layton, is Willow's only son—as well as the wolf I'm about to be mated with. When did Julian get another mate?

At my coming-of-age ceremony, I was supposed to accept the Chosen Mate Mark from my childhood sweetheart, the pack healer, Rowan. We were supposed to be bonded for life. But then Caleb, our Alpha, stepped in. In front of everyone, he pulled me into his arms—an irresistible force, a suffocating tenderness. He claimed it was a Fated Mate bond, that his wolf had lost control. He forcibly marked me. After crying all night, I had no choice but to accept it. I became the pack’s Luna. Everyone thought Caleb and his wolf were possessive. Insane for me. Then, two years into our bond, I finally got pregnant with his pup. That’s when he cupped my face, his eyes red-rimmed and gentle. He forced me onto a cold medical table. Rowan gave me the injection. A lethal dose of wolfsbane to kill our pup. The reason? I’d once been trapped with Rowan for three months in an abandoned silver mine during a rogue attack. A mine that suppressed our wolf powers. He was killing my pup to silence the pack’s rumors about its bloodline. But more than that, he was severing my last tie to Rowan. All so Rowan would be free to bond with his sister, Chloe. That’s when it hit me. My entire life since that ceremony? A lie. A carefully crafted trap. Fine. This sham of a mate bond? This pack? I don’t want any of it.

Two days before the full moon, my mate Derek, our pack Alpha, decided to take his Omega assistant Sarah hunting in the forest. I didn't argue or make a scene. I even lovingly packed his bags for him. He mocked me, saying my pregnancy had finally taught me to be gentle. After he left, I immediately went to terminate the pregnancy. All because in my previous life, when I prevented him from accompanying that Omega, his little assistant was brutally murdered by rogue wolves in the forest. Derek acted indifferent on the surface, but when I was about to give birth, he sliced open my belly with a silver dagger, removed our unborn pup, and cut it to pieces before my eyes. Only then did I understand he had resented me all along. With this second chance, I will leave him with nothing.

The day my mother pulled up to school in a Cullinan, I was digging through a trash can for stale bread. She was furious. She snatched the bread right out of my hand and crushed it under her heel. "I give you a living allowance and you're out here going through the garbage? Are you trying to make your own mother look like a joke?" I was about to explain when Ms. Laura grabbed my arm and whispered in my ear. "Don't talk back. Your mom's been a CEO her whole life. She can't handle being challenged in public, especially not by her own daughter." Ms. Laura was my mother's best friend. My living allowance went from my mom to her, then to me. Two hundred a month. When I stayed quiet, Ms. Laura went over to my mom's side. "Elsa's just trying to experience what a tough life feels like. That's the mindset of someone with real grit. Don't crush her spirit." The suspicion in my mother's eyes didn't fade, but the edge softened a little. "This dedicated to roughing it? Fine. But she can't keep this up. People are gonna think my company went under." "Go swipe your meal card and bring me a school lunch. I want to see what they're feeding you here." I lowered my head. Quietly. "I don't have any money." My mother exploded. "No money?! I transfer twenty thousand to Laura every month for your living expenses! I send you the most advanced suppressants and nutrition supplements straight from the company lab! It's only been five days into this month and you're telling me you're broke? Where is all that money going?!" The entire courtyard went dead silent.

It was right before the Full Moon Gala for our seventh mating anniversary. My fated mate, Alpha Caleb, pinned me against the wall for a deep kiss. His large hands roamed my body, eyes burning with lust. He almost couldn't resist stripping me naked right then and there. Blushing, I pushed him away. "We have the Full Moon Gala to attend. How can they start without the Alpha and Luna?" He let me go reluctantly, wrapping an arm around my waist as we headed to the venue. Seeing the hickey on my neck, his Beta, Marco, smirked and asked him in the pack's obscure old Lycan tongue. "Alpha, who's hotter in bed? The Luna or your new Omega assistant?" Caleb casually handed me a pastry, then carelessly replied in the old Lycan tongue. "That Omega is so tight she drives me fucking crazy. But keep your mouths shut. If the Luna finds out, she'll leave me. Her temper is fiercer than that Omega's body." His Beta and Gamma chuckled, promising to keep their Alpha's secret. I stood right there, while my inner wolf let out a mournful whimper. Caleb had no idea. To help him run the pack better, I had pored over ancient texts and mastered their secret tongue long ago. I also knew long ago that he had an Omega mistress. But I didn't cry or throw a fit. I simply submitted an application to the Hidden Sanctuary of the Supreme Healers' Council in silence. In three days, I would do exactly what he feared. I would sever our mate bond completely and leave his territory forever.

When the pack set out on its southward migration, Rebecca Hale, one of our newly appointed young leaders, proposed changing the route at the last minute. She wanted to break away from the main column, take the shortcut past Blackwind Gorge, rest in wild-wolf territory along the way, and live on berries gathered by the roadside. Each wolf would need only half a bag of rations, and we would reach the southern grounds ten days ahead of the main column. Freedom and speed were the whole point. My family had guarded the border of Blackwind Gorge for generations. I knew exactly how deadly that route was. Every year, young wolves who strayed from the pack died in that gorge. Some were flayed by rogues; others became prey for venomous snakes. Newly adult she-wolves were the easiest targets of all. In my past life, I fought with everything I had to stop them. I went from pack to pack, warning each Alpha until they withdrew. In the end everyone gave up the shortcut. Rebecca alone refused to listen. She vanished on her second day in the gorge. A week later, her body was found among the loose rocks. Because I had stopped the others in time, I earned the right to become the pack's priestess. But on the day of my investiture, my mate, Stefan Cross, tore out my throat. "If you hadn't stopped everyone from going with her, Rebecca would never have died alone! "You'll pay for her death with your life!" The packmates I had risked everything to save stood there cheering my death. Then they hurled my body onto the altar. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day Rebecca proposed the detour through Blackwind Gorge.

A rival pack invaded, putting our entire pack in danger. Everyone was scrambling to evacuate. I waited outside the office for an hour, but Ethan never showed up. I mind-linked him, but he still didn't answer. The fighting was getting close, so I had no choice but to call him. A woman's voice answered instead. "The pack is under attack. Ethan didn't think I'd be safe getting to the safe zone on my own, so he's taking me there." "Oh, and he said you should get there on your own. He isn't picking you up today." She hung up before I could say another word. My heart sank. If I'm not his first choice, then I don't want this anymore.

On the day of my mate bond ceremony with Harry, his first love, Teresa, suddenly appeared. She tried to stop Harry and me. But Stephen, the Alpha of our pack, ordered the servants to block her outside. At the final step of the ceremony, when Harry and I were on a power stone at the bottom of a sacred cliff, Teresa fell from the sky. When we approached, she was already dead. Harry held back his tears and proceeded to complete the mate bond ceremony with me. In the following years, Harry hated me and Stephen deeply. As the Beta, he should have been Stephen’s most powerful supporter in the pack, but he took over the Alpha’s position and expelled Stephen from our pack. Stephan became a bankrupt and wandering werewolf. Harry brought different she-wolves home every night, and even took other werewolves to our bedroom while I was asleep. Until one day, Harry kidnapped Stephen and me. He brought us back to the same cliff. “Teresa jumped from here. Only one of you will live. Let’s see who will push the other down.” To his surprise, we both jumped. When I opened my eyes, I was back to the day of the mate bond ceremony. I saw Teresa was still alive and about to break into our ceremony. Stephen was standing beside me. We quickly changed looks. I shouted, “Wait a minute! Let her in.”

A woman showed up at my cabin door, claiming to be a Beta's mate. She said she wanted to rent my herb field for three hundred dollars a month, to grow medicine for her injured mate. Three hundred? Seriously? That land is the only one in the entire pack—blessed ground that drinks in the Moon Goddess's power. Herbs grown there could pull a dying wolf back from the dead. I turned her down. But she wouldn't let it go. So Sun, my dog, barked and chased her off. Figured that'd be the end of it. Wrong. The next day she came back with two Gammas, busting right through my door. They screamed at me, called me a worthless human who had no business touching pack land. Then they tied me up and made me watch as they burned my herb books, beat Sun, and tore out every single plant I'd grown. What they didn't know? I'm human, yeah. But I'm the adopted human daughter of the Bloodmoon Alpha and Luna. That herb field? Their gift to me on my eighteenth birthday. And those herbs they burned? The only cure for her mate's dying breath.

The day my parents severed their mate bond, my sister and I had to choose. One of us would go with our father—the Alpha who'd gambled away every inch of pack territory in underground wolf fights. The other would go with our mother, who was marrying Alaric, the most powerful Alpha in the werewolf world. In my past life, my sister fought to go with our mother. I stayed behind with our father in silence. Later, our father rebuilt himself. His territory grew tenfold. He became one of the strongest Alphas, and I was his most beloved daughter. But my sister provoked the tyrant Alpha Alaric, was banished from his territory, and was torn apart by rogues. After rebirth, my sister didn't hesitate. She dropped her packed bags and clung to our father, sobbing: "Daddy, I can't leave you. Let my sister go live the good life with Mom. I'll stay with you." Our father's eyes softened with emotion. He looked at me quietly packing my things, and his voice turned cold: "Get out. You're just like your mother—a gold-digging bitch." I didn't argue. I left in silence. In my past life, I fought thousands of battles in underground wolf pits for him. My wolf nearly died countless times. My body was covered in scars. I won back his territory piece by piece. Only then did he wake up, pull himself together, and become a powerful Alpha again. But my wolf had been shattered beyond repair. On the verge of death, my wolf burned the last spark of her life to reverse time. But she couldn't reverse her own decay. This time around, all I wanted was to find a place with no fighting and sit in the sun for a while.

Introduction A year ago, I had my eyes on the winning prize in the arena - a rare red gemstone, and wanted to win it back as the mating ring with my Alpha mate Damien. Just as I was about to claim victory and take the prize, Damien's secretary Celia stepped forward to challenge me. Damien laughed helplessly. "Young girls love these shiny things. As the Luna of our pack, you should be generous and let her have them, okay?" I refused outright and defeated her. That day, Celia ran off the platform crying. I proudly showed Damien my prize. He kissed my forehead helplessly. "My stubborn little wildcat." After our mating ceremony, he claimed me night after night for a whole year, in every way imaginable, never giving me a moment's rest. But one year later, I received an invitation to a private combat arena. Videos and photos of me beneath Damien, my eyes hazy with desire, were brazenly displayed as the victor's prize. Damien had his arm around Celia's waist. "Don't you love fighting? There are over a hundred people here. I'll have them challenge you one by one. Whoever wins gets a sex tape of you and me. A whole year's worth."

I was born a Gifted She-Wolf — the only one who could carry an heir of the Ashford royal bloodline. The Alpha King begged me to marry his heir, Hadley. I refused and mated to Hadley's brother — the disgraced former heir who'd been injured in battle. The rumors said he could no longer function as a man. Because in my past life, I'd loved Hadley. We grew up together. I gave him everything. I swallowed bowl after bowl of forbidden tonics. I let blood parasites tear through my veins just to conceive his pup. And when I nearly bled to death giving birth, Hadley threw me to the Rogues. I screamed. I begged him to stop. He just held our pup and laughed. "If you hadn't bewitched my father, he never would've forced me to mate you. My Juno died of heartbreak because of you. You're a Gifted She-Wolf, aren't you? You love breeding so much — then breed for every Rogue in Ashford Territory." The Rogues broke me until I died. Hadley tossed my body at Juno's grave as an offering. My pup was recorded as Juno's child. Then I opened my eyes — back to the moment the Alpha King first begged me to marry Hadley.

When I returned from a mission, I found my Alpha mate, Wyatt, had tattooed his Beta's sigil next to our sacred mating mark. I cut my mission short, stormed back to the pack, and publicly declared my intent to Reject him. The mating mark is sacred, a symbol of two souls eternally bound. Desecrating it is the gravest insult to the Moon Goddess. Wyatt tore the rejection papers to shreds, casting them to the ground. Fury blazed in his wolfish eyes. "Over a sigil? You're tearing us apart over a meaningless symbol. Are you insane?" "Do I look like I'm kidding?" I sneered. "Fine. Let the Moon Goddess be your judge." The color drained from his face. "Faye, if you dare go through with this, I'll strip Rory of his birthright. He'll never be Alpha." "How could I be cursed with a mother like you? You're ruining my future as Alpha! I hate you!"My son, Rory, snarled from the side, his eyes burning with hatred. I looked at this father and son, who was now both strangers to me, and my heart turned to ash. My fingers tightened on my herb pouch. "The moment your father desecrated our mark," I said, my voice eerily calm, "I was already done with you."

The pack's border was under attack by rogues, with countless casualties. As a healer, I led my team to provide support. However, on the way back, I was kidnapped by rogue wolves. Lucas arrived immediately with the rescue force, but he just stood there and watched as the rogues shattered my arm and slashed my face open. He made no move to intervene. As I was tortured nearly to death, I overheard Lucas talking with the captain of the rescue team. "Alpha, if we don't rescue the Luna now, her arm might be permanently damaged." But Lucas remained unmoved, saying coldly, "I have to do this so that Kira can get the position of Chief Healer." "Susan earned merit supporting the border defense. The Chief Healer position should rightfully be hers. The only way is to have someone shatter her arm so she can never hold a scalpel again. Only then will Kira have a chance at becoming Chief Healer." "She'll just have to suffer for now. I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to her." Hearing his words, my heart grew cold, and I stopped struggling. I never imagined that the man I loved most would be the one truly responsible for destroying me.

My mate, Jasper Morrison, says coldly, "Elena, I'm breaking our mate bond." We stand on the open ground at the edge of the Silvermoon pack's territory. The full moon hangs high overhead, and this should be the sweetest moment for fated mates. We've loved each other for ten years. And now, he's about to break the bond Moon Goddess has given us. "Why?" I ask in a shaky voice. "You're an orphaned wolf," he says, turning his face away. "You don't have the bloodline to match me. The pack Elders have already approved this." A tearing pain rips through my chest. Having the mate bond stripped from me feels like my soul is being torn apart. I collapse to my knees, gasping for air. "Serena's father is one of the strongest Alphas in the North," Jasper says, looking down at me without a trace of guilt. "She'll help me rise as the strongest Beta in the Silvermoon pack's history." "You said…" I clench my teeth, fighting the pain. "You said you'd spend your life with me." "I was young and foolish," Jasper replies, already turning away. "The bonding ceremony is in three days. I suggest you don't cause trouble." Moonlight glints off his retreating form. I watch him walk away, my fingers clutching the moonstone bracelet my mother left me. It's my only keepsake. A message from an unknown number appears. "Elena, this is Damon, your older brother. I've been looking for you for 20 years." "I've attached a black card with unlimited credit. The resources of the entire Blackwood pack are at your disposal. No matter what you're facing, I've got you." I stare at the screen. The Blackwood pack? The top wolf pack in North Anthica? Another message soon pops up. "I'll come get you in three days. Wait for me." My finger hovers over the delete button. It has to be a scam. I'm just an orphaned wolf. How could I possibly have a brother from the Blackwood pack? Just then, a voice message from Jasper arrives. "Elena, for old times' sake, I'll arrange a place for you in one of the pack's spare houses when the ceremony ends. You can stay as part of the pack. I'll take care of you." He wants me to watch him bond with another she-wolf and thank him for keeping me in the pack. I delete Jasper's contact, then rename the unknown number in my phone to "Damon". My fingers tremble as I type a single word. "Okay."

The day before the Imperial Academy trial, my online boyfriend told me his friend had drawn me as his partner. Before I could even process what he meant, he dragged me into a group chat. "Congratulations, Liam! You drew yourself a 200-pound partner!" Right after that, someone posted a photo of me from three years ago for everyone to see. In it, I wore an XL ceremonial robe, my face so chubby my ears practically disappeared. The chat instantly exploded with laughter. "God, that's not a werewolf. That's a porcupine on two legs." "A bet's a bet, Liam. You drew her yourself!" "Who says his partner is useless? She could sit on the prey and crush it to death! Hahaha!" Before long, someone started a betting pool. They were betting on whether I'd dare show up for the trial the next day. My online boyfriend bet 10,000 gold coins that I wouldn't. "Don't blame me, guys. You drew her yourself!" Liam, the werewolf who had drawn me, didn't say a word. Then Claire, the girl everyone in the chat had crowned the prettiest girl at the academy, suddenly tagged me. "Sweetie, don't listen to them. You'll still come tomorrow, won't you?" I watched the insults fly across the screen and laughed. None of them knew I'd lost 100 pounds for this trial, dropping from 200 pounds to 100. For the past two months, I couldn't leave the house without some werewolf hitting on me. Without saying a word, I placed my own bet. 30,000 gold coins that I'd show up on time.

When I was little, I nearly drowned. Later, I was poisoned with wolfsbane. Both left me timid to the bone, afraid of the dark, afraid of water, afraid of being alone. One time I fell into freezing water. Just when I thought I was going to die, Herman found me and pulled me out. He told me, "You scare easily. Don't do anything alone. If you need me, just call. I'll always come." So when my claustrophobia got worse, I called him. He said, "I've already found a therapist. Come to the pack and see me." When I arrived at the pack, he was playing video games with his best friend, Clara. Clara's eyes stayed on her phone. "See? She came here by herself," she mocked. "Scared out of her mind, and she calls herself a werewolf. How embarrassing." Herman patted her head. "Fine, you win. I'll take you to the haunted house tomorrow." I sank to the floor, too weak to stand, staring at them in disbelief. Herman kept staring at his phone. He didn't even glance at me. "If you're this much of a coward, you'll never survive in the real world. We're training you." I screamed, breaking down. "Do you have any idea I almost died just now!" Clara put down her phone, annoyed that she'd lost the game. "You're alive, aren't you? Stop screaming. Herman, just get the therapist." When Herman saw me crying, he walked out immediately. Clara followed him. I had barely caught my breath when the lights suddenly went out. The whole pack compound went dark. "Herman! Clara! Where are you? Why did the power go out?" I screamed their names, but no one answered. Then a text popped up on my phone. "Already scared, you little coward? Hang in there. This is training. It'll make you brave." Another text followed. "Stop relying on other people all the time. You need to learn to be independent." I was timid. I was weak. But I still had my dignity. If I was going to have to get used to being alone anyway, then the two of them could get out of my life for good.

Three years ago, Lucas’ mother paid me ten million dollars to play his fated mate with the help of a potion. Lucas believed I was hopelessly in love with him. What he didn’t know was that I was nothing more than a hired actress. By day, I stood at his side during training. By night, he paraded a she-wolf through the mansion. He once sneered, “Don’t delude yourself into thinking the mate bond can change me.” I only smiled, silently counting my money. “Funny, because I never planned on giving you my heart, either.” On the day the potion wore off, I walked away with the fortune, while he spiraled into madness. Three years later, I returned victorious as the youngest S-class strategy consultant. There he was, on his knees, murmuring, “I was wrong.” Little did Lucas know that his arrogance, handed out like charity, had carried a hefty price tag of ten million. Now, even if he lost everything, it still wouldn’t be enough to buy my forgiveness.

I was nine months pregnant when the Wolf Council sent a resource report to the Luna’s quarters. It listed my mate’s monthly distributions. For two years straight, my husband—the pack’s Alpha—had been secretly providing the same female wolf with territory access, protection, and supplies. Without missing a single month. The first record dated back to two years ago. The same month I lost my first pup. A notification appeared—A contact request. The note read: “A woman kept by an Alpha.” I was strangely calm, one hand rested on my swollen belly as I accepted. She messaged immediately. “You saw the report, didn’t you?” I didn’t reply, I opened her feed instead. The earliest post was dated April 21st, two years ago. A female wolf leaned against an Alpha’s chest. His face was cropped out—but the mark on his shoulder was clear. I recognized it instantly. My mate’s Alpha mark. The caption read: “Thank you for choosing me on my coming-of-age night.” April 21st. That was the night I lay bleeding in the healing room, losing my unborn pup. He had told me he was away on pack business. I kept scrolling. She trained freely in Alpha-only areas. Used resources reserved for the Luna. Was guarded as if she already belonged at his side. Every post carried the same message: He chose her. Pinned at the top was a medical report—She was pregnant—With the Alpha’s pup. I put the device down and returned to our bedroom. Then I received it—Photos. Videos. She sent them to me on purpose— to flaunt that the love I had once been so proud of had already rotted beyond repair. I sat down slowly, my pup shifting inside me, pain spreading through my chest. Only then did I understand—He had betrayed me completely. This kind of love—I don’t want it. This pack—I won’t stay in it. When my pup is born, I will leave—And I will take his heir with me. Let the Alpha search every territory, scour every border, tear the pack apart in regret— he will never find us.

When they dumped my sister Ayana Vale's body into the altar, it was in pieces, mangled beyond recognition. I overheard the warriors who had dumped her body there. They said she had been framed for conspiring with a witch to harm Lilith Voss, Silver Moon's future Luna, and had been subjected to dozens of brutal tortures before she finally died. "No one really believed she was working with a witch. They only had Lilith's word for it. But the Alpha refused to let Ayana defend herself. He simply decided that Lilith's miscarriage had been caused by a witch's curse. Poor girl kept calling out for her sister right up to the end." That was how I learned what had happened to Ayana. I was away sacrificing my wolf in exchange for the Moon Goddess's protection over the pack. Before I left, Soren Blackwood, my childhood friend and the Alpha of Silver Moon, had sworn to protect Ayana. But he had branded Ayana a witch's accomplice and condemned her to brutal torture for the sake of another woman. I looked down at Ayana's broken body, and a bitter laugh escaped me. Day after day, I prayed at the altar, sacrificing myself to secure a century of prosperity for the pack. And they had repaid me by torturing my sister to death. If that was how it would be, then the pack I'd spent so long protecting was also mine to destroy.