I Left After My Alpha Chose His Mate

I am Ayna Radolf, the only White Wolf in Moonshadow Pack. Everyone says I grew up cherished by Carlson Moonclaw, the Alpha. When I was three, my father died in battle. Carlson held me in a pool of blood and swore to protect me for life. When I was five, I was bullied in the pack because of my unusual fur color. He announced to the entire pack that anyone who touched me was his enemy. For 15 years, I have lived under his protection, offering him my heart and my life without reservation. At 18, Carlson falls under the vampires' death curse. I willingly sacrifice half of my lifespan and beg a witch to use a forbidden spell to transfer the curse onto me. With that, I take on his certain death. On that same day, as I watch his unconscious form and tightly furrowed brows, I cannot help but kiss the corner of his lips. He wakes up. Unexpectedly, there isn't any tenderness or any trace of emotion—only overwhelming rage and disgust. He grips my chin with horror in his eyes, as if he is looking at a filthy maggot. "Ayna, I am your brother! How dare you have such disgusting thoughts?" From that day on, Carlson has avoided me like the plague. This goes on until Selena Fang, his so-called fated mate, returns. She cries and tells him that she is abused and abandoned by her former mate. Now, she is blind and covered in injuries. The healer declares that only my White Wolf's eyes are a perfect match for her. So my Alpha, the brother I loved for 15 years, comes to me. Carlson stands in front of me and says solemnly, "Ayna, I know this is unfair to you. But if Selena doesn't have eyes, she will live in darkness for the rest of her life. As long as you give her your eyes, I will do anything you ask—except give you my love." I snap back to reality and dig my fingers hard into my palm. The sharp pain clears my mind instantly. I am not dreaming. I am reborn and back to the day Carlson forces me to give up my eyes. In my previous life, I refused to the end. During the struggle, Serena "accidentally" fell off a cliff, and her body was never found. Carlson blamed me for everything. On my birthday, he gouged out my eyes and threw me into the dungeon where rogue wolves were imprisoned. There, I was assaulted endlessly. In the end, I died in the cold, damp darkness like a piece of discarded trash. The despair and pain from before my death still linger in my bones. I look at the man in front of me. The love that once filled my chest completely fizzles out into nothingness. I will give him these eyes as repayment for the 15 years he has protected and raised me. From now on, we will go our own ways, and we owe each other nothing. Chapter 1 "I'll do it," I said. Every argument and underhanded tactic that Carlson Moonclaw had prepared to coax and pressure me into agreeing with him suddenly died in his throat when he heard that. He was visibly taken aback with a flicker of surprise in his eyes. "Well, since you agreed to it, then I will definitely carry through with it. You can ask for anything except for me to mark you." I looked up, meeting his gaze, and said, "I only have one request. After the surgery, I want to leave Moonshadow Pack, and I will no longer be your stepsister from then on. I don't want to have anything to do with the pack or with you anymore." Carlson's brows furrowed instantly as if he'd just heard a pathetic joke. "Are you serious, Ayna Radolf?" He probably thought that I would behave like I used to, crying and demanding that he give me all of his love and attention and make me his mate. He never thought that I would ask to leave. "If you don't have pack protection, you won't be able to live on your own beyond three days with your current condition," he said in a warning tone, certain that I was only throwing a tantrum and playing hard-to-get. I responded nonchalantly, "Okay." I didn't care if I could live on my own after that. It was certainly better than certain death under his hands. Carlson looked at my unperturbed expression and frowned even harder. A few seconds later, the shock in his eyes vanished, replaced instead with disdain and mockery. "I get it now. You think that I'm going to give in to your inappropriate whims and fancies just because you're threatening to run away from home?" He looked down on me, his tone self-righteous and condescending. "Stop it with your little schemes. There will never be a future between us. My only mate is Selena, and Selena alone." I looked at him behaving like this and felt a profound sense of helplessness. I could still vividly recall the pain of being torn apart by the Rogue wolf in the underground dungeon in my past life. And so, this time, I certainly wasn't so pathetic as to cling to someone who wanted me dead ultimately. "I know," I responded just as calmly. Carlson looked like he still wanted to say something, but I couldn't be bothered to listen to him anymore. "If you don't have anything else to say to me, then I'm taking my leave now." I turned around and walked out of the room without a backward glance. I'd only just made my way out to the hallway when a loud scream suddenly rang out. A split second later, Carlson rushed out right past me, shoving me aside harshly with his shoulder, his eyes fixed on the figure lying on the ground. "Selena!" He rushed up to her and carefully gathered her into his arms, tenderly yet urgently asking her if she was alright. "What happened?" Selena Fang shrank into his arms, timidly raising her eyes to him and looking hesitant to speak. I saw her glancing toward me with malice in her eyes. "It's not Ayna's fault, Carlson. I just couldn't see where I was going because I'm blind, and I guess I must have bumped into her… Please don't blame her for anything." She then bit her lower lip and humbled her voice until she could barely even be heard. "After all… She's a noble white wolf, and I… I'm just a blind, abandoned, used-up piece of trash. I don't mind living in the darkness for the rest of my life because I don't expect her to give me her eye… "I just wish that she'd stop shoving me… It's hard for me to walk on my own, and I'm already frightened as I am…" Tears then began streaming down her cheeks as she played the perfect role of the victim. The same thing had happened to me in my past life, and I was nailed to the pillory of shame because of what she said here. But this time, I simply stood there and coldly watched her pathetic performance. "Noble?" Carlson turned abruptly to look at me, his eyes as sharp as knives. "She doesn't even deserve it." His words stabbed right into my heart like a frigid icicle. "If it weren't for my protection all these years, she'd end up nothing but trash, utterly destroyed by the Rogues! Forget about her losing just one eye—she'd still have to put up with it if she lost them both!" So, the person whom I had loved with all of my heart for 15 years thought that I was nothing but a worthless piece of trash who didn't even deserve to exist. My heart clenched uncomfortably at the thought, but still, I felt utterly relieved more than anything else. I refused to continue listening to his degrading words and walked out of the healing center instead. The cold wind whipped against my face. I pulled out my phone and called Mia Grayhound, my only friend in the world. I went straight to the point as soon as she picked up. "Mia, I heard that the Northwind Center is willing to take in homeless wolves. Is that true?" Mia went silent for a second. When she spoke again, she sounded tense. "It's true. But what happened? Did Carlson bully you again?" "No," I said, leaning back against the cold wall, my voice soft yet firm and determined. "I'm just asking hypothetically if I were to be exiled from my own pack, and my wolf was severely injured, would the Alpha of Northwind Pack still take in a useless wolf like me?" Chapter 2 Mia immediately gave me a positive answer. She said that the Alpha of Northwind Pack was completely different from the other hypocritical Alphas in the southern region. Apparently, the Alpha didn't care about the wolf's bloodline or their strength. If a wolf had nowhere to go, the Northwind Pack doors were always open to them. I heaved a sigh of relief and felt my tension easing away. As it turned out, I wasn't going to be truly without options anyway. Just as I ended the call and put my phone away, I felt a hard chest slamming up against my back. I smelled the familiar scent of cedar in the air and knew that it was Carlson. His brows were furrowed as he glared down at me, sounding impatient as he interrogated me. "Who were you talking to on the phone? What is this about a shelter?" I felt my heart drop into my stomach. However, I quickly calmed down after that. Carlson had only heard bits and pieces of my conversation. He hadn't managed to overhear everything. So, I lowered my eyes and got rid of all the emotion in my eyes before coming up with an excuse. "Oh, it was Mia. She invited me to watch a movie about a shelter and asked me if I was interested." The doubt in Carlson's eyes quickly disappeared. His lips curled up in a sneer as he scoffed and said, "Nonsense. You should stop being friends with shady hooligans like Mia. She's only going to corrupt you." He then paused for a bit and resumed his cold demeanor. "The surgery is scheduled in three days. I will be bringing Selena home to take care of her in the meantime. It's more convenient that way." Then, he seemed to suddenly think of something, and his voice got even colder as he ordered, "Also, get rid of the stupid stars in your room and make sure Selena never finds out about them. I don't want any misunderstandings to happen." Stupid stars. So, that was what he thought about those memories. I smirked lightly and self-deprecatingly. When Mom and Dad died in the battle, I nestled in Carlson's arms, sobbing hard and asking him if there was anything I could do to bring them back, how to be strong so that I wouldn't continue getting bullied, and what I should do so that Carlson would always like me. Back then, Carlson wiped away the blood smears and tears from my face and said, "The Moon Goddess will grant your three wishes once you've managed to fold 1000 paper stars, Ayna." I believed him. Ever since getting a crush on him, I wrote down all of my unspoken love, affection, and dependence on Carlson onto the tiny paper slips before folding them day after day into paper stars and collecting them into a glass bottle. After 15 years, I had finally finished folding all 1000 of them. However, the very person who wove this fairytale for me had long forgotten that promise a long time ago. "Fine. I'll throw them away," I said, my voice dry and hoarse, going with everything he said. Carlson seemed very satisfied with my obedience. "Smart. At least you know what's good for you." Then, he turned and left. I went home and pushed open the door to the second bedroom, my eyes widening as soon as I saw Selena seated on my bed and holding the glass bottle of stars in her hands. She was happily unfolding the stars one by one, reciting aloud the words I'd written in a drawn-out voice. "Carlson called me pretty today. I was happy for the entire day." After reading it aloud, she threw the slip onto the floor and clicked her tongue in disapproval. "What touching, unrequited love, Ayna." I clenched my fists and suppressed my anger. "You're not even going to pretend to be blind anymore?" Selena didn't seem to panic even though I'd caught her red-handed. Instead, she slowly looked up and waved the glass jar at me. Her right eye was wide open, and it looked clear and bright. There was no sign of blindness whatsoever. "So, you knew all along," she said with a malicious grin on her face. I stared at her intact eye and found it ridiculously absurd. "You already have all of Carlson's love, Selena. Why are you still pretending to be blind? Why won't you just leave me be?" Chapter 3 "You're asking me why?" The smile on Selena's face suddenly turned dark and twisted. She jumped up from the bed and took menacing steps toward me. "Do you even know what kind of life I'd been living all these years, Ayna Radolf? "That bastard I was mated off to treated me like livestock, constantly beating me up and verbally abusing me every single day! I was fed rotten scraps and even had to sleep with one eye open to avoid being mauled to death by the other she-wolves!" She then pointed at her blind left eye with a resentful look and said, "And what about you? What were you doing back here when I was being treated like a mongrel elsewhere? "You stole all the love and affection that should have belonged to me! You were cared for so tenderly by Carlson the whole time, and even being treated as the apple of his eye! Why? Why!" She suddenly raised her voice as she screamed in my face. "I am the one who was his fated mate all along! All of Carlson's love and all of the best resources in the pack should have been mine! Mine! "Why should you, an orphan without even the mark of a fated mate on her body, take all of this from me and enjoy them all in my place?" I felt a deep chill run down my spine after listening to her maniacal words. I never thought that her resentment toward me had stemmed from such a ridiculous "reason" where she accused me of usurping her place in the pack. I wasn't the one who caused the suffering she went through outside the pack. And yet, she still pinned the blame for her misfortune on me. "So, I decided that I'm going to ruin your beautiful silvery eyes. As long as you descend into a pathetic wolf, despised by everyone who sees you and forced to eke out a living in the total darkness, then I will finally consider that you'd have repaid all of the good days you lived in my place, with interest." She then cackled aloud with a strange, crazed look in her eye. "When that time comes, Carlson's gaze and all his love will finally belong to me, and me only!" "You're out of your mind," I said, suppressing the chill in my heart. I didn't want to continue arguing with this mad she-wolf anymore and just fixed my gaze on the glass jar instead. "Give that back to me!" I demanded. "Give it back? Sure!" A malicious look flashed in her eye before she suddenly dropped the glass jar. The jar hit the ground and smashed into a hundred pieces on the hardwood floor, and all 1000 folded paper stars containing my love for Carlson scattered all over the place. At the same time, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from downstairs. Selena screamed out loud and threw herself to the floor, tears immediately gushing from her eyes. Carlson's figure then appeared at the door. When he took in the scene, his face immediately turned as dark as thunder. He pulled Selena into his arms at once and began yelling at me without even bothering to ask what was going on. "Ayna Radolf! What the fuck is wrong with you!" I ignored him and crouched on the floor, picking up the broken pieces of glass instead. The sharp edges sliced into my fingers, and blood seeped out at once, bleeding into the paper stars on the floor. "I just… I just accidentally walked into the wrong room, Carlson… I didn't mean to bump into Ayna's jar…" Selena shrank herself into Carlson's arms as she began sobbing harder. "I didn't think that she would rush up to me and shove me over. I didn't mean to break her things…" Carlson's knuckles popped as he clenched his fists. He'd only just reminded me earlier today to get rid of these "stupid stars", and yet, how dare I shove Selena to the floor after she'd broken it? He was just about to roar at me in fury when his gaze suddenly landed on an unfolded paper star on the floor with something written on it. "I wish that Carl would stay happy and healthy forever." Chapter 4 Carlson's movements stopped abruptly. "That's enough! Stop picking that shit up!" he said, rubbing his temples in anger. "It's just a stupid jar anyway! I'll buy another one for you if you insist! Selena never meant to break it!" I froze halfway through cleaning up the mess. Then, I slowly got to my feet and took a step back, addressing him respectfully yet distantly, "There's no need for that, Alpha Carlson." Carlson froze for a split second. Over the past 15 years, I had only ever called Carlson by his nickname, "Carl", no matter if we were alone or in public. Even if he reminded me again and again that I should always refer to him as "Alpha" and obey the rules, I would stubbornly refuse, insisting that it was only a term of address for a wolf that I wasn't close to. But now, even though we were in a private space with just a few of us, I had referred to him as "Alpha Carlson". A strange sense of unease instantly washed over him. Selena also sensed that he was distracted and hurriedly shook his arm, speaking in a sweet, coquettish voice. "Do you think that Ayna is still mad at me? It's my fault for being blind. I shouldn't have knocked over her belongings…" Carlson snapped back to the present and patted her on the back, comforting her. "Just be more careful next time. Ayna's very attached to that jar. Don't hold it against a kid like her." This was the first time Carlson didn't completely take Selena's side and even defended me subtly. Selena's eyes were immediately filled with immense jealousy. Yet, she nodded meekly and said, "I got it. Whatever you say." That night, I collected all of the scattered stars and threw everything into the fireplace. I watched as the little notes filled with 15 years of my love and affection for Carlson curl up, burn, and turn into ashes in the flames. It had taken me 15 years to fold these stars, but it only took a minute for me to burn them all up. I heard footsteps behind me, and Carlson's voice appeared soon after. "What the hell are you doing, Ayna?" I didn't even look up and continued throwing more stars into the fire. I answered calmly, "Nothing. Just getting rid of rubbish." Carlson glanced at the unburned paper stars, and his face darkened at once. "I will be officially holding the marking ceremony with Selena after the surgery." I shivered very slightly, but I turned numb again shortly after. "Congratulations." I said it flatly and indifferently without a trace of anger, jealousy, or any other emotions. Carlson stared at my face for a long time like he was trying to find even the slightest hint of anger or sadness in my expression, but he couldn't find anything. He didn't know why, but he suddenly felt a bout of disappointment washing over him. So, he began adding fuel to the fire like he was deliberately trying to get a reaction from me. "Selena already said that the marking ceremony would only happen once in a lifetime, and she's not used to wearing any clothes made by other tailors. It must be made by the best seamstress in the pack." His eyes were like knives as they landed on my face. "Ayna, you've always loved sewing clothes and coats for me since you were young. The entire pack knows that you're the best seamstress. So, I want you to personally make the clothing and garments for Selena and me for the marking ceremony." I finally gave him a reaction by looking at him incredulously. When he saw that I was finally responding to him, he grinned smugly and said, "What, you don't want to? Don't you dare forget that this is what you owe to Selena. You'd been upsetting her too much. This is your way of making it up to her." I lowered my eyes to hide the self-deprecating look in them. Did I even have the option to refuse now anyway? I inhaled deeply and put on a wan smile. "Yes, Alpha Carlson. I will do as you say, since it is a direct order from you." However, it would be up to fate to decide if I would ever be able to finish making them. I didn't spare him another glance before stumbling out of the door. Carlson stood alone in the living room, watching the fire slowly die down as the inexplicable panic in his chest only grew worse. This was what he'd always wanted. I had finally relented and given in to him, listening to his every order and not pestering him anymore. But why was it that he just couldn't feel happy about it? … I stayed out by myself the next day. When I finally returned to the pack afterward, I realized that everyone in the pack was behaving strangely toward me. Those who walked past me looked at me judgmentally with undisguised contempt and disgust in their eyes. Some of the younger brats even spat in my direction before running off in disgust. "She acts all high-and-mighty all the time, but as it turns out, she's nothing but a horny bitch who keeps throwing herself at Alpha all day!" "How could she even think of seducing her own stepbrother like that? She's such a disgrace to all the she-wolves in Moonshadow Pack!" "Filthy, shameless creatures like her should be exiled from the pack immediately!" Insults after insults were thrown in my face. I was still feeling completely bewildered about their reactions when I suddenly got a phone call from Mia. She sounded angry and urgent. "Ayna! You must have been set up! Hurry up and look at the werewolf forum online! Everyone's talking about it now!" I hurriedly went online to the forum. At the very top of the homepage, highlighted in a bright red box, was a partially censored explicit video. The she-wolf in the video had a face that looked almost identical to mine, and she was naked all over while kneeling before the camera, wagging her tail, and pretending to look pitifully at the camera while repeatedly moaning Carlson's name. Chapter 5 The comments under the video were utterly disgusting. Countless vulgar words and profanities were directed at me, and an Alpha from another pack even posted, "I never thought that the white wolf of Moonshadow Pack was such a slut. Why don't you come and sleep with me instead? I guarantee that you'll have a wonderful time!" And yet, ten minutes right after the video had been posted, Carlson's beta, Neil Barker, immediately issued an official statement claiming that Alpha Carlson of Moonshadow Pack would never mark his stepsister, and had absolutely no relation to the she-wolf depicted in the video. This statement was tantamount to a public admission that the wolf in the video was me. My head felt like it was in a whirl. My fingers also ran absolutely icy-cold. I forced myself to calm down as I repeatedly stared at the scene in the video, finally realizing a loophole in it. The she-wolf in the video didn't have anything on her abdomen, but I had a butterfly-shaped birthmark on my abdomen that had been with me for years. This video was a fake. It had to have been Selena. There wouldn't be another wolf who'd put in so much time and effort into ruining my reputation with such underhanded tactics like her. I gripped my phone tightly in my hands and hurried toward the watchtower. I'd heard that Carlson was there right now. I naively thought that he would still believe me if I explained myself and showed him the birthmark on my abdomen, and that he would clarify things on my behalf in public, clearing my name and proving my innocence. The wind blew hard at the watchtower, and my hair was a mess by the time I arrived there. Carlson turned around and caught sight of me and my windswept hair. I was panting hard, and his eyebrows immediately shot to his forehead as he looked at me impatiently. "What the hell are you doing here now? Is the video not embarrassing enough for you?" I couldn't be bothered explaining myself and hurriedly lifted my shirt to expose the butterfly-shaped birthmark on my abdomen. "The wolf in the video isn't me, Alpha! See, I have a birthmark right here, but the wolf in the video didn't! Selena was the one who framed me! You need to clarify—" Before I could finish my sentence, he interrupted me angrily. "That's enough!" He then abruptly shifted his gaze away from me like he'd just seen something utterly filthy and disgusting, his eyes filled with shame, anger, and disgust. "How much longer are you going to make a fuss like this? Have you not yet completely exposed yourself in that video? Are you seriously going to expose yourself to me in my face now too?" I froze at once, my arm stopping mid-air. "How dare you resort to such filthy, disgusting, underhanded methods, destroying even your own reputation just so that you could ruin the marking ceremony between Selena and me? Is this how you're going to force me to get together with you? "Do you have no shame, Ayna Radolf?" His words cut right into my chest like a knife laced with poison, shattering the last illusion of hope in my heart. I bit on my pale lips as all of the words I wanted to say to him died in my throat. Everything ached in pain. I knew then that it was useless no matter what I said to him. He'd already decided that this was all a charade I had orchestrated just for the sake of forcing him into marking me instead. When he saw that I wasn't saying anything else, the icy look in his eyes intensified. "If you really thought that creating such a massive scandal like this would force me to mark you, then you're completely mistaken." Every word he said was downright cruel to me. "Listen properly. I will still find you absolutely disgusting even if you took off all your clothes and kneeled down before me right now. I will never, ever like you for the rest of my life! Not even in my next life, if there ever was one! Got that?" The hand that I'd used to lift the hem of my shirt fell limply to my side. I then lowered my eyes, completely losing all strength to argue with him. "Reflect properly on your actions. If there's a next time, I won't even hesitate marrying you off to a random Alpha as a marriage alliance!" Just then, a few warriors and healers rushed into the watchtower in a hurry before setting down the stretcher behind them. Selena was lying on it, barely breathing. "What happened?" Carlson demanded at once, his pupils constricting as he rushed over to her. The healer sighed helplessly and said, "Alpha, Selena wasn't able to find you and suffered severe eye damage due to excessive grief. She can't wait any longer. She needs to undergo surgery immediately—" Before the healer was even done speaking, I interrupted him and looked at Carlson. "I agree to the surgery. However, don't forget the pact we agreed on beforehand. After the surgery is over, you must get Neil to post a notice on the forum announcing my departure from Moonshadow Pack. "And from then on, we will be even and not owe each other anything anymore. What you do after that is none of my concern, and vice versa." Carlson agreed to it immediately. … Selena's wails echoed incessantly as we lay on the operating table in the healing center. The healer in charge of the surgery looked at my pure, silver eyes, and couldn't bring himself to operate on me. His voice trembled as he told Carlson, "Alpha, the white wolf is the pack's lucky symbol. I just can't do it!" "You useless piece of trash!" Carlson roared at the healer, snatching the scalpel from his hands. "I'll do it!" Chapter 6 My fingers trembled violently. As expected, even though the timeline had changed in this lifetime, I still couldn't escape the fate of having my eye gouged out by Carlson's own hands. Just then, the healer's assistant rushed in. "Alpha! The scheduled anesthesia won't be arriving until tomorrow, and there's only one dose left. It's not enough for both of the patients!" Carlson looked back and glanced at Selena, who was writhing in pain, then at me, lying on the operating table. He didn't hesitate when he gave out his orders. "Give Selena the dose." The assistant hesitated. "But what about Ms. Radolf—" "She is a white wolf. She has strong regenerative abilities. She can put up with it." Carlson coldly interrupted the assistant's words as he began walking toward me menacingly with the scalpel in his hands. He figured that it wasn't a big deal just to dig out one of my eyeballs. After all, he had killed many wolves and witnessed countless bloody battles, so this should be a piece of cake for him. However, when he saw my eyes looking at him, he suddenly began sweating from his palms as memories from when we were ten flashed through his mind. Back then, I had just gotten a minor scrape on my palm and immediately began wailing in pain, and he had to bribe me with ten lollipops to make me feel better. Nobody knew how much I was afraid of pain more than he did. He suddenly began to panic. However, Selena's painful whines and whimpers still continued floating into his ears. He forcefully suppressed the panic in his heart and spoke in a low voice that he probably didn't even realize was trembling a little. "Don't be afraid, Ayna. I'll be gentle. It'll stop hurting very soon." However, I just stared up at the ceiling blankly with my lifeless eyes like I never heard a word he said. Excruciating pain instantly swept through my entire body the moment the sharp scalpel pierced into my eye socket. It hurt so much that my veins immediately bulged with pain, and my body convulsed violently. However, I bit down on my lips and refused to let out a single peep. Ultimately, I still passed out from the pain. The surgery was over an hour later. When I woke up again, I felt a horrible hollowness in my left eye that was also throbbing with pain. I was now a disabled wolf. I looked around the ward and realized that it was completely empty. Not a single soul was there with me. I numbly forced a bitter smile on my lips, struggled to get to my feet, and stumbled out of the ward, relying on my only remaining right eye for sight. Carlson was in the next-door ward, holding Selena's hand in his as he gently comforted her, "Alright, it shouldn't hurt anymore. You've only just received the eyeball. It's normal for you not to get used to it just yet." When he saw me coming over, he averted his gaze for a split moment before frowning and saying, "Why aren't you resting in your bed?" I didn't answer his question and instead said dryly, "Kindly keep your promise to me, Alpha Carlson, and make the announcement to the whole pack." Carlson's expression fell as soon as he heard me say that. He thought that I was there to seek comfort from him, but I had only gone over to sever all ties with him. "You're really—fine! Go ahead!" He felt a surge of inexplicable anger welling up inside him. He raised his voice at me and said, "Since you're being such an ungrateful brat, then I'll just grant you exactly what you asked for! Neil!" Carlson beckoned to Neil with a frustrated wave of his hand and told him to do just that. A few minutes later, Neil published an official announcement on the top of the pack's online forum. "Official Announcement: White Wolf Ayna Radolf will be leaving Moonshadow Pack at her own discretion. From this day onward, her fate is no longer in the hands of Alpha Carlson Moonclaw." A relieved smile finally appeared on my pale face when I saw the announcement pinned to the top. I didn't linger after that. I just dragged my wounded self and walked out of the healing center. This was goodbye. I never wanted to see Carlson ever again. Chapter 7 After I left, Carlson stayed by Selena's side for more than 24 hours. When Selena finally opened her eyes and exclaimed excitedly that she could see again, he looked at the silvery eye on her face that once belonged to me and somehow wasn't able to feel any joy. Instead, he felt an indescribable irritation that only seemed to get increasingly worse inside of him. The scene from the operating table earlier flashed repeatedly in his mind. I hadn't been administered a single dose of anesthesia during the surgery, and yet, when the scalpel sliced through my flesh, I had simply bit down on my lip and passed out just like that without even making a sound. I never even whined or begged him for mercy to go easy on me. It was getting dark out, and Selena still hadn't stopped yapping. Carlson found her too noisy and hurriedly made up an excuse before strolling out of the healing center. The cold night wind managed to clear his mind a little, somewhat. He was sure that I was just being stubborn and prideful with him. Following my old habits, he thought that I would most definitely be hiding in our secret hideaway cave on the back of the mountain, feeling absolutely aggrieved and crying my heart out after suffering so much. All he had to do was just soften his tone a little with me the same way he'd always done in the past, say a few comforting words to me, and I would obediently give in, lower my head, and follow him home, just like I always did. With such thoughts occupying his head, he suddenly realized that he'd unintentionally made his way to the cave at the back of the mountain. "Stop making a fuss, Ayna," he said, calling out into the cave. However, the moonlight shone into the cave through the entrance, and he saw that the cave was empty. There wasn't anyone hiding inside at all. Carlson's heart suddenly dropped into his stomach. He still stubbornly went inside the cave. It still had the same layout as before, with a small bed, a worn-out tire seat, a weather doll with a funny face drawn on it, and a superhero figurine that we had found somewhere in the woods. He couldn't help smiling as he looked at the things inside the cave. However, when his gaze landed on the cave's stone wall, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. There had originally been two little figures holding hands etched into the rocky wall there, which I'd carved stroke by stroke about ten years ago. One of the figures was me, and the other was him. But now, the figure representing him in the wall had been angrily scratched out by a rock, and the deep, glaring cut marks had completely disfigured the carving's face and hands beyond recognition. The only figure left was the one that represented me, and she looked very lonely by herself. An immense sense of unease immediately threatened to drown Carlson. He rushed out of the cave and began searching for me high and low everywhere in the pack, trying to pick up my scent. Finally, he noticed a tiny figure in a fox fur coat at the watchtower in the far distance. The coat had been a birthday gift from him last year. His tense body relaxed at once, and his fear was then replaced with anger and annoyance at being fooled. He thought that he should have expected that I would pull this hard-to-get trick on him after all. Who was I trying to fool with my pitiful act, still climbing up the watchtower in the chilly, biting cold despite being newly blind in one eye? Carlson immediately strode up the steps and spoke in his usual condescending manner. "Are you done throwing your tantrum? Hurry up and go home to rest. As for the announcement, I can always explain to the pack—" The figure suddenly turned around to look at him in confusion. "Alpha? Were you… Were you talking to me?" Carlson finally got a good look at the face under the moonlight. Chapter 8 It wasn't me. Instead, it was a teenage pup, Amber Clawe, who was responsible for gathering wild fruit and produce in the pack. She was looking at him with a fearful and bewildered expression on her face. Carlson froze to the ground. He swallowed thickly and asked, "It's you? Why are you wearing Ayna's clothes?" "Ayna gave it to me," Amber replied timidly. She'd only just finished answering him when a warrior rushed over to the watchtower and reported urgently, "Alpha! We just came back from doing a headcount, and none of us has seen Ms. Radolf anywhere. Someone saw her leaving the pack after the surgery last night." The cold wind swept across Carlson's face like a ruthless blade. He stood rooted to his spot, his mind completely blank. "Alpha, Ms. Radolf has only just had an eye removed, and she's at her most vulnerable state now. Should we send someone to go after her?" the warrior asked hesitantly. Carlson immediately snapped back to his senses and balled his hands into fists. His tone was resolute, yet it was tinged with a hint of panic that he didn't even realize was there. "What should we go after her for? She's just doing this to force me to submit to her. She can go ahead and suffer for a bit with that stubborn demeanor of hers!" He paused for a moment as though he'd only just thought about something. He then cocked his eyebrow and feigned composure as he said, "Send out an invitation to every pack in the vicinity and invite them all to my and Selena's marking ceremony." He figured that I wouldn't be able to stay away from him if I knew that he was going to be holding a marking ceremony with another she-wolf. He was so sure that I wouldn't be able to get over him because I'd loved him for 15 years. However, he never heard a single word from me over the next few days. He busied himself preparing for the marking ceremony, personally selecting everything from the tiny flower bouquets to the embellishment on their garments, and yet, I still hadn't said anything, even until the date of the ceremony itself. Carlson was beginning to get restless. The marking ceremony was held with extraordinary grandeur at the Moon Altar. There was a path lined with rose petals that stretched out for a mile, fine wines and hors d'oeuvres flown in from human society, a bridesmaid troupe in the hundreds, and even a number of major human celebrities were in attendance. Members of the surrounding packs watched with envious eyes, whispering marvels at the wealth and power of the Alpha of Moonshadow Tribe. The horn sounded, and the marking ceremony officially began. Carlson stood on the platform and silently activated his mental link, frantically searching for my figure in the dense crowd below him, but he couldn't find me. He couldn't see me anywhere. He also couldn't smell my familiar scent anywhere either. "Carlson?" Selena's gentle voice interrupted his thoughts just then. She wore an elaborate Luna robe as she slowly walked down the aisle toward him while being escorted by her maid of honor. Carlson instinctively reached out to steady her. The fabric brushed against his palm, and he lowered his gaze, his eyes landing on the buttons on her cuffs. His fingers then froze at once. This wasn't my handiwork. I once told him that the buttons on sleeve cuffs were too troublesome and cumbersome, and I would always make alterations to the sleeves every time I made him something. He finally realized belatedly that I had already decided to leave the day I agreed to make the ceremony garments for him the other day. This hadn't been a spur-of-the-moment thing after all. I'd already been thinking about it for a while before that. "Alpha Carlson, do you take Selena Fang to be your mate?" the officiant asked, his voice echoing around the Moon Altar. "In sickness and in health, in strength and in weakness, will you always share her glory, never to leave her for life?" Never to leave her? These words stabbed Carlson right in the heart like red-hot needles. Many years ago, that adorable little white wolf pup covered in mud tugged on his sleeve and asked him innocently, "Carl, will you still never leave me even if you find yourself a mate next time?" Carlson's breath caught in his throat, and his chest hurt so badly that he couldn't breathe. "Carlson? What's on your mind?" Selena asked, reminding him once more. He managed to draw himself out of his memories. However, when he lowered his head and looked Selena in her eyes, he felt all of his blood run cold at that moment. He was staring at my eye. My unique silvery eye, which could only belong to a white wolf, was now on Selena's face, and it looked strangely incongruous with the rest of her features. He stared at the eye and suddenly realized that all the sound seemed to have vanished from his ears. His mind was now filled only with the image of me on the operating table—covered in blood and biting down hard on my lips, trying not to make a sound despite the excruciating pain. "Carlson? Carlson!" Selena's smile had frozen on her face, barely concealing her embarrassment. It wasn't until the officiant reminded Carlson again that he finally apologized. Just as he was about to say, "I do", the large LED screen behind them flickered for a bit. The screen that was supposed to be playing a cute video of his and Selena's wedding photos suddenly changed. Several large wolves were seen pinning down a she-wolf in a dimly-lit cave, their crude panting and howling echoing loudly throughout the altar. The moment Carlson saw the face on the screen, his pupils dilated immediately as a mixture of shock and rage filled his eyes. He was just too stunned to say anything at all. The she-wolf in the very center of the video was none other than Selena, now dressed in pure white—his fated mate that he was about to mark!