"Crocodile tears!" A wolf clan elder suddenly leaped onto the platform. His claws slammed hard against the Soul Vision Device.

The screen flickered. It went black for a moment. Then it jumped back to life.

He pointed at me, his knuckles white with rage. "Years ago, little Aiden knelt at your cave door! His head was bloody from banging against the stone! Why didn't you open the door?! Speak up! Why are you playing dumb now?!"

No one answered.

All eyes in the square turned toward me.

From the entrance, came the sound of small footsteps.

Little Aiden stood there. Barefoot. His eye sockets were sunken deep. His pupils looked empty and hollow.

He murmured as if talking to ghosts. "Mama... don't be afraid... Aiden will stay with you..."

His voice carried a sob. His small body trembled constantly.

Suddenly he lunged at the Soul Vision Device. His tiny claws pressed against the screen. He screamed, "Come out! Mama, please come out!"

The wolves' eyes turned vicious. Their fury reignited like wildfire.

"She won't even save a child!"

"This kind of lone wolf doesn't deserve to live!"

Damien rushed to me in one stride. He grabbed my shoulders and shook me violently.

His wolf eyes were blood red. His teeth were clenched tight. "Look! This is the price of protecting that bastard!"

"When we found you, you were a wild dog about to freeze to death! It was you, Lina! You killed Sophia!"

He raised his hand. He slapped me hard across the face.

The Alpha's strength made my head snap to the side. My lip split open immediately. Blood poured out.

But I did nothing. I just kept my eyes open. Tears mixed with blood flowed down my face.

"Sophia... I'm sorry..."

"What good is sorry?!" He suddenly roared. But his voice cracked. Like something had torn it apart.

He froze.

Memory flashed back. Ten years ago in the cave.

I was curled in the corner, holding Fenrir in my arms. My head was bleeding.

Damien burst in, carrying a wooden club. His eyes were red with rage.

I looked up at him. My lips trembled. "Damien, please trust me... I can't tell you..."

"Can't tell?!" He roared, "Sophia is dead! And you're still protecting that bastard who defiled purebloods?!"

The club came down. Bones made a dull sound.

Blood flowed from my forehead into my eyes. Everything turned red.

Before I fell unconscious, I still held Fenrir tightly.

But back then he couldn't see. He refused to see.

My sleeve was torn, revealing a deep purple mark. It was the brand of "Betrayal Blood Contract." Only those who had truly sworn a blood oath would be marked with this soul-searing curse.

And the content of blood oaths could never be spoken aloud.

Damien's hand was still shaking. That slap seemed to have shattered something inside him too.

Looking at me barely alive, a single tear suddenly slipped from his eye.

But he immediately wiped it away.

His wolf eyes froze again. Like black iron.

He stared at me, word by word: "Until I find that bastard who defiled purebloods, I will never stop."

"When I find him, you and him will go to hell together."

The soul mage's trembling fingers hovered above the energy lever. His voice was tight with fear. "But her body is too weak. If we extract more from her soul core... it might shatter and kill her."

The entire square held its breath.

Damien stood in the center of the platform. He stared at the cracking soul shadow on the screen. His face was dark as the sky before a blizzard.

He remained silent. His jawline tensed into a sharp edge.

After a moment, something flickered deep in his wolf eyes. An almost imperceptible flash of pain—like a dark current beneath ice.

But that softness lasted only an instant.

The next second, hatred flooded his gaze again.

He coldly spoke one word: "Continue."

Little Aiden suddenly screamed, "Stop torturing Aunt Lina! She'll die!"

He rushed forward. His tiny body crashed against the protective barrier. But the pack members grabbed him and pulled him back.

"Don't go soft!" someone roared angrily. "We must find the killer! Sophia cannot die in vain!"

The Soul Vision Device rumbled. The metal needles pressed down again. They pierced three inches deep.

My consciousness felt like it was being torn to shreds. Screams burst uncontrollably from my throat. They echoed across the snowy plains.

Damien rushed toward me. His eyes were blood red. He roared like a wounded beast. "Lina! Who is worth protecting like this! Tell me!"

He suddenly collapsed. He threw himself against my shoulder. His body shook violently.

Tears rolled down. They dripped onto my blood-stained hands.

"We're supposed to be blood siblings..." he choked out. His voice was broken. "How could you protect someone else... and abandon Sophia..."

My heart suddenly trembled.

As if stabbed by some sleeping memory, instinctively, I wanted to raise my hand. I wanted to wipe away that tear for him.

But in that instant, my defenses loosened.

The memory I had sealed with a blood oath finally broke free.

The screen flickered violently.

The wolves cried out in unison: "Look! It's the crime scene!"