Since You Don't Want Me, Then This Is Farewell
The ninth bonding ceremony between me and the Alpha King, Thorne Ravencrest, is finally here. Yet once again, I failed to become his Luna Queen.
Not because he broke his promise, but because I'm not qualified enough.
The Elders made it crystal clear that every Luna Queen recognized by the Moon Goddess throughout history must cultivate 365 Moonlight Flowers using their own blood essence. But every year on the eve of the ceremony, no matter how careful I am, there's always one flower missing.
This year, I nearly drained myself completely and barely managed to grow the right number. Ecstatic, I go to find Thorne, wanting to surprise him.
Through the partially open door of the throne hall, I hear his Beta say to him, "Alpha King, Sera's been waiting for you for eight years now. Are you ever going to bond with her?"
Thorne shakes his head. "I promised Willow we can't bond this year either."
His Beta hesitates. "What if Sera actually manages to grow enough Moonlight Flowers?"
Thorne goes silent for a moment, then claps his hands. A shadow wolf appears and melts into the darkness.
Before long, a shadow wolf returns with a Moonlight Flower clamped in its jaws. He tears the flower into shreds and lets out a sigh.
"Sera has plenty of blood. Forget one year. She could keep cultivating for another ten years and still be fine.
"But Willow's been poisoned with wolfsbane. I'm all she has left, and she wants me by her side in her final days.
"I can't bear to refuse Willow, which means Sera will just have to wait a bit longer."
I bite my lip hard, barely able to believe what I'm hearing. So the Moonlight Flowers that kept mysteriously disappearing were all destroyed by him.
Becoming Luna Queen has been my dream since childhood. But if he never intended to bond with me at all, then it's time I leave him.