Aria POV

The moment the rejection vow was completed, a strange lightness washed over my soul.

The sensation of iron wire cinched around my lungs was gone. I drew a deep breath and found my chest was now a hollow chamber, so empty I could hear the echo of each beat of my own heart.

I looked down at the man kneeling on the cold stone floor.

He was breathing heavily, trying to soothe the raging beast inside his head.

I remembered how this scene played out in my previous life.

Back then, my Inner Wolf had howled in agony at the mere thought of a fake rejection. I had lost my mind with grief. I had grabbed the silver goblets from the bedside table and smashed them against the walls. Silver was lethal to our kind, and the metal had burned my skin, but the physical pain was nothing compared to my broken heart.

I had slapped Julian across the face.

He had taken the hit with a guilty look, and then he had used his Alpha's Command. The Alpha's Command was the absolute vocal authority that forced any lower-ranking wolf to obey. He had forced me to calm down, forced my knees to bend, forced me to listen to his lies.

I had cried and asked him if he really wanted to throw our bond away.

He had sworn to the Moon Goddess that it was only temporary.

When I had packed my bags to return to my family's manor, he had panicked and blocked the door, shouting that he would rather let Elara die than lose me.

I had been foolish enough to believe him.

But now, standing in the same room, I felt nothing but a profound and chilling indifference toward him.

Julian slowly stood up, rubbing his chest where our bond used to be.

He looked at my calm profile, and a deep frown formed on his face. A low, guttural vibration rumbled in his chest, a sound of profound unease from the beast beneath his skin.

He took a step toward me, reaching out his hand.

"Aria, are you alright?" he asked softly. "We can still fix this. There are ways to reforge a bond—"

Before his fingers could graze my arm, I stepped away. My stillness was a wall of ice he could not breach, and it made him freeze in his tracks.

I closed my eyes and reached out to the only mind-link I still had access to. As a member of a high-ranking noble family, I had my own personal mind-link with my loyal servants.

Pack my bags, I commanded my personal maid through the telepathic link. Everything.

I opened my eyes and looked at Julian.

"You should go," I said, my voice flat and emotionless.

"Go where?" Julian asked, looking entirely lost.

"To the dungeon," I replied. "You need to release Elara before she freezes in the damp cells."

Julian blinked, clearly expecting me to fight him or demand his affection.

"I do not want to delay the birth of the Northern Pack's new Luna," I added with a polite, empty smile.

Julian's face twitched.

"Aria, do not speak like that," he warned, taking another step forward. "You are still my mate in my heart."

"Hearts change, Alpha Julian," I said, using his formal title.

I walked past him, heading toward the heavy wooden wardrobe.

"Go," I ordered, not looking back. "Your new Luna is waiting."

Julian stood there for a long moment, the silence that settled between us a heavy dust, choking the air.

Finally, he turned and walked out, his heavy boots echoing down the stone hallway.

He mistook the finality for a passing storm. He did not realize I was already erasing him from my life.

But as the door closed behind him, I placed a hand on my stomach and made a silent vow to the life within.

This time, I would not be a victim. This time, I would be the storm.

Aria POV

Before Julian could reach the dungeon, a guard knocked on my door.

"My lady," the guard said respectfully. "The prisoner Elara has requested to see you one last time before her release."

I paused my packing. The corners of my mouth drew back, not in a smile, but in the baring of teeth.

"Prepare my cloak," I told my maid.

I wrapped a thick, black fur-lined cloak around my shoulders to block the chill that gnawed at the bones.

The dungeon was located deep beneath the castle, smelling of wet earth, iron rust, and fear. Torches flickered along the stone walls, casting long, dancing shadows.

I stopped in front of the iron bars of Elara's cell.

Elara was sitting on a dirty straw mattress. She wore a thin, torn dress, but the moment she saw me, she jumped to her feet. A sharp, grating laugh scraped the damp air.

"I won," Elara sneered, grabbing the iron bars with her pale hands. "You're losing your crown, Aria."

I looked at her dirty, ambitious face.

Elara was the daughter of a Beta, a high-ranking officer, but she had always craved the ultimate power.

My mind drifted back to the Moon Festival from years ago. It was a sacred tradition where young she-wolves proved their worth to the pack under the full moon.

Elara had wanted to show off her beauty. She had cheated during the drawing of lots, ensuring she got the ceremonial dance while I was stuck with the dangerous hunting trial.

But her plan had backfired. I had used my sharp werewolf senses to track and kill a giant, rogue bear that had been terrorizing our borders. I had dragged the massive beast back to the festival. The Queen of the Royal Pack, who was visiting, had praised my strength and courage.

Elara had been furious, accusing me of trying to humiliate her. Our friendship had ended that night.

But her true hatred for me began on the day Julian inherited the Alpha title.

That was the day of our Recognition. Julian had locked eyes with me across the courtyard. He had caught my unique scent, a mix of winter snow and sweet wild berries.

I remembered the physical surge, the way my blood boiled and my heart hammered against my ribs. Julian's Inner Wolf had roared in his mind, claiming me as his. Mine!

When his hand touched mine for the first time, a violent electric shock had traveled up my arm, sealing our fate.

Elara, who had loved Julian since childhood, had watched it all happen with venom in her eyes.

Now, standing in the dungeon, Elara thought she had finally taken my place.

But something in her expression was wrong. Beneath the sneer, her eyes were too sharp. Calculating. She was studying my reaction, testing for cracks.

This was not just gloating. This was reconnaissance.

In my past life, I had come here weeping. She had seen my weakness and used it. This time, I gave her nothing.

"I would rather become a feral Rogue and rot in the wild than bow to you as a servant," Elara spat, her eyes gleaming with malice. "You always thought your old blood made you better than me," she continued. "But look at you now. A man's pity is far more powerful than the Moon Goddess's mate bond."

Her mouth curved into a smile, but her left cheek twitched, a small, betraying spasm. She fought to keep the tears welling in her eyes, but the muscle just below her cheekbone, pulsing with unrestrained glee, gave her away entirely.

"Julian chose my life over your feelings, Aria."

I stared at her, feeling absolutely no anger. She was so pathetic.

"You think you have won Julian," I said, my voice echoing softly in the damp stone corridor. "But you only won a man who is willing to throw away his soul for a fake reputation."

Elara's smile faltered for a second.

"Enjoy your borrowed crown, Elara," I whispered, stepping closer to the bars. "It will be the heaviest thing you ever wear."

I let my gaze drop deliberately to her hands, then back to her face. "And when it breaks you—and it will break you—remember this moment. Remember that I did not lift a finger to stop you from walking into your own grave."

I turned around, my black cloak sweeping across the dirty floor.

"Wait!" Elara yelled, rattling the iron bars. "You're just jealous! I'll give him the strongest pups!"

I did not stop walking.

But I heard it—the tremor beneath her rage. The first hairline fracture in her confidence.

She knew something had changed. She just didn't know what.