6:00 AM.

The silence of the bedroom was shattered by the sharp ring .

Ethan practically ejected from the bed. He grabbed his phone, a flicker of panic crossing his face.

He glanced at me, checking if I was still "asleep," then answered in a hushed voice as he hurried out to the balcony.

I opened my eyes. My wolf hearing sharpened, picking up every sound through the glass doors. I listened to him standing in the freezing wind, his voice so gentle it could drip honey, pleading with whoever was on the other end.

I didn't need to smell the air to know who it was.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, Ethan pushed the door open. As he changed his clothes, he said, "Ivy, what do you want for breakfast?"

I rolled over. "Whatever."

Ethan rushed out the door.

Half an hour later, he returned, looking travel-worn. In his hands were two roasted deer legs that had gone stone cold and a cup of goat milk that had lost all its steam.

"Ivy, the line at that specialty restaurant was too long, so I just bought something from a roadside stall. Eat it while it's... well, try to eat."

Roadside stall. Cold goat milk.

So this was his "deep affection."

I didn't touch the breakfast. I just watched as he took out his phone, snapped a photo of the dry, unappetizing deer legs, and posted it to the Werewolf Social Network.

[Ran across half the territory just to buy Luna breakfast. It was hard work, but as long as she likes it, it's worth it.]

Almost instantly, the post was flooded with likes and comments.

"The Alpha is such a simp for her!"

"Is this what a fated mate bond looks like?"

"Ivy is so lucky, truly blessed by the Moon Goddess!"

Ethan replied to the comments with satisfaction, a smug smile on his lips.

However, I noticed that among all those likes, Daisy's name was missing.

That was because, at this very moment, Daisy was posting a photo in a "Close Friends" group—visible only to him.

The photo showed a steaming, top-tier steak, rare and bloody. The caption read: [Even though he had to cross half the territory, he still delivered the fresh kill straight to me. Love you, my Wolf King.]

The timestamp? One hour ago.

It turned out his "running across half the territory" was to deliver fresh meat to his mistress. On his way back, he just grabbed some cold scraps fit for a stray dog to shut his wife up.

I stared at the cold goat’s milk—thick, pungent with that overpowering gamey stench—and felt the irony slap me hard across the face.

"Why aren't you eating? No appetite?" Ethan put down his phone, asking with feigned concern.

"I'm full."

I stood up. "I'm not going to the Alpha Gathering tonight."

"You have to," Ethan objected immediately. "All the other Alphas are bringing their mates. If you don't go, they'll laugh at me. Besides..."

He paused, his eyes shifting shiftily. "Besides, I want to show them how beautiful my Luna is."

8:00 PM. The Alpha's Private Club.

The VIP room was dimly lit, thick with the smell of cigars and strong liquor.

The moment I pushed the door open, I saw Daisy sitting in the corner.

She was wearing a low-cut silk camisole that clung tightly to her curves, and with a deliberate little shift of her shoulders, she squeezed her full breasts—laughing coquettishly as she chatted up the wealthy Alpha beside her, every move oozing unapologetic allure.

When she saw Ethan walk in with me, her eyes flashed with resentment for a split second before she switched to her innocent, wide-eyed act.

"Hello, Luna. I'm the Alpha's new assistant. He said he was short-handed, so I came to help pour drinks."

I gave a faint nod and didn't say a word.

For two whole hours, Ethan put on the performance of a lifetime.

He cut my steak for me, blocked shots of strong Tequila on my behalf, and even when someone jokingly asked Daisy to sing, he kept his eyes straight ahead, acting as if he didn't know the female at all.

"Damn, Ethan, that self-control is legendary."

"With a high-blood Luna at home, how could any stray she-wolf catch his eye?"

Ethan soaked up his friends' flattery. He wrapped his arm around my waist, looking at me with deep emotion. "Exactly. In my eyes, no one compares to Ivy."

I felt suffocated. I made an excuse and went to the restroom.

I stood in front of the sink for a long time, splashing cold water on my face, trying to wash away the fake smile I had plastered on.

When I returned to the VIP room, my hand had just touched the doorknob when the raucous laughter inside allowed my heightened hearing to pick up every distinct word.

"Ethan, I couldn't ask while Luna was here, but what's the deal with the Omega assistant?"

"Yeah, the way that little chick looked at you... she wanted to eat you alive."

Ethan's scornful laugh drifted out, heavy with intoxication. "Just for fun. Meat delivered to your door—you'd be an idiot not to eat it."

"Aren't you afraid Luna will find out?"

"Her?" Ethan's tone was dismissive. "She's a blockhead. What does she know? She's like a dead fish in bed, absolutely boring. Nowhere near as wild as Daisy."

Immediately after, Daisy's sickly-sweet voice chimed in. "Ethan, you're so bad! You acted so serious in front of Luna earlier; I almost got jealous."

"Be a good girl. Come here and let me kiss you. Holding back earlier was killing me."

Then came the sound of fabric rustling and heavy, breathless moans.

The room erupted in cheers and catcalls.

"Moon Goddess above, Ethan is a legend! Getting handsy right in front of us?"

"Come on, come on, Truth or Dare! Ethan, tell us: do you prefer the holy goddess at home, or the little wild cat in your arms?"

Ethan's voice was muffled, sounding like his face was buried in the woman's chest. "A goddess is for worshiping on a pedestal. But in bed... I prefer a slut."

Boom.

The explosion of laughter from inside the room felt like a series of slaps across my face.

It turned out that in the eyes of his friends, I was just a "blockhead" used for decoration. A joke kept in the dark.

My hand slowly released the doorknob. I didn't barge in with righteous fury. I didn't shift and roar.

I turned around and walked to the balcony at the end of the corridor.

The biting night wind dried the moisture in the corners of my eyes.

Just then, the phone in my pocket vibrated.

It was an unknown number.

"Hello, is this Ms. Aurora?"

The voice on the other end was formal, male, and rigorously professional.

"Speaking."

"Ms. Aurora, I am the human lawyer handling your disassociation from pack affairs. All the cancellation procedures you entrusted to me have been completed."

"The pack real estate under your name, the luxury cars, and the family trust funds have all been liquidated and transferred to a confidential Swiss Bank account. Your identity information within the Werewolf Registry will be formally deleted in two weeks."

"Additionally, the ticket for the private jet to the Neutral Territories has been issued. The flight is scheduled for the early morning, exactly a week from now."

"Do you need to bring any other identification besides your Rogue passport?"

"No, the passport is enough."

As soon as I hung up, I heard footsteps behind me.

"Ivy, why have you been gone so long? What do you need a passport for?" Ethan walked over, reeking of alcohol, and hugged me from behind.

I calmly put my phone away, suppressing my nausea, and didn't push him away. "Nothing. My friend lost her passport; I was just asking how she could replace it."

"Oh, Moon Goddess above, for a second there I thought my Luna was trying to sever the Mate Bond and leave me to go Rogue." Ethan teased, burying his face in the crook of my neck and inhaling deeply.

I tried my best to pull away, but the procedure to remove the Alpha Mark from the nape of my neck over the last few days had left my inner wolf incredibly weak. My vision went black, and I completely lost consciousness.

When I woke up, I was already in the Pack Hospital.

The Healer said my wolf was dangerously weak and needed a high-concentration nutrient IV drip for observation.

I lay on the hospital bed, a needle in the back of my hand, staring boredly out the window at the withering pack forest.

The building next door housed the VIP entrance to the Pup Nursery.

A familiar figure flashed by.

It was Ethan. He was carefully supporting a woman whose belly was slightly swollen, radiating the thick, distinct scent of a pregnant she-wolf. It was Daisy.

Daisy seemed to sense something. Her ears perked up, and she turned her head. Through two layers of reinforced glass, her eyes met my icy gaze.

She didn't panic. Instead, she flashed a triumphant, provocative smile. Deliberately, she leaned her head on Ethan's shoulder, pointing at her belly and whining about something in a baby voice.

Ethan petted her head dotingly. In his other hand, he carried bags of magical supplements—top-tier deer blood and spirit herbs that only those with Alpha bloodlines were entitled to enjoy.

A while later, Ethan returned to my ward. In his hand, he carried nothing but a container of cold soup .

"Ivy, feeling better? The Council of Elders is pushing hard; there's some trouble with a territorial dispute. I might not be able to stay long."

I watched his clumsy performance. I didn't even have the desire to growl. I just said flatly, "Go handle your business."

"You're so good. My Luna is the most understanding." Ethan let out a sigh of relief.

The moment Ethan left, the phone on my bedside table started vibrating incessantly.

It was a barrage of messages from Daisy, like artillery fire meant to demonstrate her power.

A werewolf pregnancy report shows the outline of the pup.

[Daisy: Luna, look how cute the little Alpha is! The Priest says his claws look just like Ethan's. He's so happy; he said he wants to give his heir the best of everything.]

[Image] An intimate photo of the two of them naked in their den. The battle had been fierce; Ethan's back was covered in scratch marks left during the heat.

[Daisy: Ethan was so rough last night; he kept wanting more. I was afraid he'd hurt the pup. He said my figure are the most addictive—sweet and hot. Unlike you. He said you’re like something dead in bed..]

Then came a string of explicit text descriptions, detailing every aspect of their mating: the outdoor locations, the shifted positions, and even the dirty talk Ethan whispered in her ear.

Every message was an attempt to enrage me, to shred my dignity as Luna, and to flaunt her superiority as the "winner."

I leaned back against the headboard, swiping through the messages one by one. My inner wolf didn't feel a ripple of emotion.

It was like reading a documentation of lower-tier beasts' mating rituals.

I felt absolutely nothing. In fact, I almost wanted to laugh.

I didn't reply. I didn't even bother to block her.

There is no need to waste emotion on someone I am about to banish from my memory forever.

I turned off the screen, closed my eyes, and rested, waiting for the bag of blue liquid to slowly drip into my veins.

After all, there were only five days left.