Hearing his footsteps fade away, I dialed a number.

It rang only once before being answered. My eyes immediately reddened.

"Father, I know I was wrong. I regret becoming the Luna of Bloodclaw Pack. Please take me home..."

After arranging with my family to return home in five days, I finally collapsed in exhaustion.

My wolf had recognized Dominic as my fated mate from the moment we met.

When I fell for him, Father had warned me that Dominic wasn't suitable for me. If I insisted on mating him, I would be the only one who got hurt in the end.

I didn't believe it then.

I naively thought love could conquer everything.

And I believed that as long as I loved Dominic, everything could be overcome?

But after ten years, my passion for love had long been worn away by his coldness.

I looked down at my broken body and smiled bitterly.

I was exhausted.

While packing my things, something suddenly flashed through my mind.

In my previous life, there had been rogue wolves hiding around Aria's residence who killed dogs for their sick pleasure. It seemed to be a threat to Aria, making Dominic furious, and he thoroughly investigated that entire area.

Since I will leave, I might as well warn her.

Consider repaying the kindness she showed me earlier when she protected me and got hurt.

I wrapped my coat, covering the swelling on my face, and walked out.

As soon as I reached the same path, I saw Aria looking around anxiously.

I hesitated for a moment, then approached her.

"Aria, what are you looking for?"

Aria looked surprised to see me, then her expression deepened with worry.

"Oh, it's you. I'm looking for Steven, a new little dog who has recently arrived here. Several dogs have gone missing these past few days, including a lot who I knew. The food I leave out for them often goes untouched. I'm worried... I suspect there might be someone specifically targeting or... harming the dogs."

My heart sank slightly.

"Don't panic. I'll help you look for them."

Aria was stunned, then her face broke into a grateful smile.

"Really? That's wonderful! Thank you!"

Drawing on my vague memories from my previous life, I deliberately led Aria toward the abandoned valley at the western edge of the territory.

"I think my wolf hears something over there."

Aria immediately tensed up, holding her breath to listen carefully.

Just as we rounded a pile of broken concrete pipes, a piercing dog's cry reached our ears.

We both froze, following the sound.

We saw a filthy and stinking rogue wolf, wearing work clothes, crouched beside a torn burlap sack, gripping a gleaming silver knife in his hand.

Something was struggling violently inside the sack, and dark red blood had already soaked through the rough fabric, dripping onto the earth.

At his feet lay several motionless dog bodies, their forms twisted, clearly having suffered tremendous torture.

Aria's voice trembled uncontrollably.

"Stop! You bastard!"

The man was startled at being discovered, then his face twisted with extreme anger and viciousness.

He suddenly stood up, brandishing the blood-stained silver blade, and charged straight toward us.

"Meddling bitches! You're asking for death!"

The silver blade was about to pierce Aria's chest.

In that instant, I saw flashes of my last life. My two children are lying in pools of blood, their small bodies cold and stiff.

No! I couldn't let her get hurt!

I used every ounce of strength left in my weakened body, throwing myself sideways and crashing hard into Aria, sending her stumbling backward into a pile of weeds.

The ice-cold silver metal instantly pierced through my abdomen.

Warm blood gushed out, quickly staining my light-colored coat crimson.

The silver hurt my wolf immediately, I couldn’t even shift.

The rogue wolf, seeing he'd missed his target, flew into an even greater rage. He grabbed my hair and slammed my head viciously against the exposed concrete pillar beside us!

"Bang!"

My vision went black and blurred. I could only watch helplessly as the man cursed and pulled out his blade, turning once again toward Aria, who was pale with terror.

"Get away! Don't touch her!"

At the critical moment, a thunderous roar exploded!

Dominic suddenly appeared, kicking the man three meters away with just one strike.

He rushed over and pulled Aria tightly into his arms, his voice filled with unprecedented tension and fear.

"Aria! Aria, are you alright? Are you hurt? Don't be afraid, I'm here, I'm here."

Aria was still in shock, tears finally beginning to flow as she clutched his clothes desperately, pointing in my direction.

"Dominic! She protected me and lost so much blood. "

“Save her, please!”

The subdued rogue wolf, desperate to escape punishment, endured his pain and immediately shouted his lies.

"It was that woman! That woman in the light coat who ordered me to do this! She said she hated these dogs, hated this lady with them! She told me to kill all these pups to frighten this lady! I was just taking money to do that! She's been working with rogues to betray you and your pack!"

His words were full of holes, utterly ridiculous.

But Dominic believed him.

Because he knew that a lot of dogs and small animals would bristle and hiss when they saw me. And he didn’t believe I liked dogs.

His eyes filled with extreme disgust.

"You really never change. Beyond redemption. "

He looked toward the rogue wolf.

"I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself."

"As long as she screams for three days and nights straight without dying, I'll let you leave and give you enough money to disappear forever."

The man's eyes immediately lit up.

"Thank you, Alpha! Thank you, Alpha! I'll make sure it's done!"

I couldn't believe it.

"You can't do this to me—I'm your mate!"

But Dominic paid no attention to me, holding the terrified Aria as he turned and left.

The next three days became a nightmare beyond anything I could have imagined in my two lifetimes combined.

Fire torture, silver poisoning, savage bites from the rogue wolf, hunger, cold...

Time lost all meaning—there was only endless pain and darkness.

On the evening of the third day, the rough seemed to become boring.

Or perhaps he was afraid I might die before the three days were up, and he wouldn't get his payment, so he finally stopped reluctantly.

"Three days are up, bitch! You're tough as nails! Heh Heh, your Alpha mate is generous. I'm free! Next time you have work like this, remember to call me!"

The world finally fell silent.

I lay in the dim little room, staring vacantly at the sunlight streaming in.

Was I going to die? That was okay, I thought.

"...Elena... Elena!"

In my daze, I seemed to hear a voice choking with tears.

"Where are you? Please answer me!"

The voice grew closer.

It was Aria.

When she saw me in the corner—bloody, mangled—she suddenly covered her mouth and let out a broken, deeply suppressed whimper.

She almost crawled to my side, her trembling hands suspended in mid-air, as if she didn't know where to touch me, afraid of adding to my pain.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

"I overheard him talking with his beta assistant. That's when I realized what a bastard he really is!"

" I must have been crazy to fall in love with such a madman who doesn't value life at all!"

She wiped away her tears forcefully.

"I'm taking you away. I'm getting you out of this hell right now! I'm taking you to the healers!"

She tried to lift me but found I was frighteningly light and fragile—she didn't know how to help me.

"Don't sleep. Elena, please, don't fall asleep!"

Her voice shook terribly.

"I know you're his mate now, and I know you have children. I'm sorry, Elena. I know you must hate me, but think about your babies—they can't lose their mother."

Hearing those words, my unfocused pupils moved slightly

My pups—they were already safe. That is enough.

I used my last bit of strength to shake my head at her, ever so slowly.

I looked past her toward the window outside and smiled with relief.

Let it all end this way.

Dominic returned to the apartment he shared with Aria, his heart still racing from the rescue operation. The familiar hallway felt different somehow, as if something fundamental had shifted in the air itself.

As he pushed open the door, the place was terrifyingly silent.

"Aria?"

He called out, his voice echoing strangely in the empty space. Usually, she would greet him with that bright smile that made everything in his world feel right. But today, there was nothing.

No one answered.

A nameless unease instantly gripped him, starting as a cold knot in his stomach and spreading through his entire body. His wolf was restless, pacing anxiously within him, sensing something was wrong.

He strode quickly into the living room, his heavy footsteps the only sound breaking the oppressive silence.

His gaze immediately swept across the familiar space—the cream-colored sofa where they cuddled during movie nights, the small kitchen where Aria made him coffee every morning, the walls covered with their happy photographs.

But something was starkly out of place on the coffee table.

It was an ordinary white envelope, pressed under a deep red booklet. The sight of it made his blood run cold. He knew that shade of red. He knew what that booklet was before he even touched it.

His hands trembled as he rushed forward and grabbed the booklet.

It was our mating certificate.

The official document that bound me and him together, bearing the official pack seal and our signatures from ten years ago. The sight of it hit him like a physical blow. How did Aria get this? Why was it here?

Beneath the certificate were several carefully cut photographs.

In the photos, two adorable pups were giggling at the camera, their chubby cheeks flushed with happiness.

Their eyes were like black grapes, bright and innocent, their small features faintly echoing his own—the strong jawline, the shape of their noses, even the way one of them tilted his head.

His sons.

The children he'd barely acknowledged, barely thought about except as burdens that tied him to Me.

She knew!

The realization hit him like lightning. Aria knew everything. She knew he was mated, knew he had two children, knew about all his deception and lies. She knew that for the past year, while he'd been telling her he was free to love her, he'd been living a complete fabrication.