"I, Lucian Moonbane, take you, Elira Hale, as my mate," he said. His voice echoing around the clearing in the forest.
I swallowed.
What… was happening?
"Lu...cian?" I whispered.
But he didn't hear me.
No one did.
Like always.
I was ignored. An afterthought.
But this time… I didn't back down.
I called out to him, louder.
"Lucian!" I said, the loudest I had ever spoken.
I knew he stood in front of me. Even though I couldn't see, I could smell him. My favorite scent—citrus. But the scent I had always loved now suddenly smelled sour.
I stepped closer, but I heard a low, feminine growl.
"Stay away from my mate!" Elira growled.
Finally, reality settled in. I forced myself not to tremble, but I couldn't help it.
"H-how... could you?" I whispered, my words directed at Lucian.
The man I had loved for three years. The Beta I had thought loved me back.
The murmurs began softly at first, drifting through the air like ghosts. I didn't need eyes to know they were looking at me. Their whispers slithered through the darkness, weaving around me like vines, wrapping around my throat until I couldn't breathe.
"She actually thought he loved her."
"Pathetic. How did she not realize he was playing with her? Why would the heir willingly want to be with a cursed thing like her?"
"Did you see? He marked Elira in front of everyone. I bet he wanted her to hear it."
The sound of laughter followed, sharp and cruel, blending in with the sounds of crickets and rustling leaves. Overwhelming me.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. My hands curled into fists at my sides, fingernails biting into my palms.
Maybe... I had always known.
Somewhere, deep down, I had always known that love was not something meant for me. That the stolen moments, the whispered words, the hand that once held mine—they had been a fantasy. An illusion I had let myself believe in.
But I had stupidly hoped.
A fool's dream.
A dream that shattered the moment he—the one person I had thought saw me, truly saw me—claimed someone else right in front of me.
And I had been there to hear it.
The crackling of the fire. The gasps of the crowd. The way he had moaned her name, the exact way I had once wished he would whisper mine.
The words rang in my head like a cruel taunt, over and over, until I felt sick.
I took a step back.
Then another.
My body moved before I could stop it, before I could think.
Then I ran.
The voices faded behind me, but their weight lingered in my chest like a boulder, pressing down, crushing me. My breath came in shallow gasps as my legs carried me away from the clearing in the forest, away from the people who had never truly wanted me.
No one called out to stop me. Why would they?
I was Mumei. Nameless. Unwanted. Forgotten.
The forest swallowed me whole. The scent of smoke and food from the full moon festival disappeared, replaced by damp moss and the faint perfume of night-blooming flowers. I moved by instinct, counting my steps, listening to the crunch of leaves beneath my feet, the steady rhythm of my own breathing.
I didn't know how long I walked before I finally stopped, my body trembling with exhaustion. The pain in my chest was dull now, numbed by the cold night air. I reached out, my fingertips grazing the rough bark of a familiar tree.
I knew this place.
How many times had I hidden here? How many nights had I curled up beneath these branches, alone in the darkness, listening to the world move on without me?
I sank to the ground, pulling my knees to my chest.
The wind hummed through the trees, carrying the distant hoot of an owl.
I smiled wryly, feeling the cloth covering my eyes grow damp with tears.
At least... I hadn't seen it, right?
I was grateful that I hadn't had to witness it with my eyes as well.
I exhaled slowly.
And for a while, I pretended I didn't exist.
The first thing I felt when I woke was warmth.
Not the warmth of sunlight or fire, but something else. A presence. A voice.
"You shouldn't sleep out here, all alone."
I didn't move. I knew that voice. Alpha Theo.
His tone was soft, gentle in a way I had never heard before. But it didn't reach me. I stayed curled beneath the tree, my fingers tracing patterns into the dirt.
"I didn't mean to fall asleep." My voice was quiet, hollow. I felt numb. Like the one crying her heart out last night hadn't been me.
He exhaled softly, and for a moment, he didn't speak. Then, the weight of his presence shifted, and I heard the faint rustling of fabric as he sat beside me.
"Our pack has survived for many centuries," he said, his voice steady. "Xaenus is a cruel world, Mumei. Strength alone does not keep us alive."
I said nothing. I didn't need to. Because I already knew what he would say next. I had always known. I had only been stupid to dream of fantasies with Lucian when my destiny had already been written in stone.
"For centuries, we have prospered because we have upheld the old ways." He paused. "And the time has come again for another sacrifice."
I should have felt fear. I should have felt something. Instead, there was only silence.
I straightened, brushing stray leaves from my tattered dress. My fingers ghosted over my throat, where Lucian's mark was never meant to be.
What else did I have to live for? Being sacrificed in return for the lives of the pack members who had fed a cursed creature like me for twenty-three years?
Sounded like a good transaction to me.
"I'll do it," I said softly. My voice didn't waver.
Alpha Theo exhaled, slowly.
"I'll be the sacrifice."
He stayed silent for a long time.
Then, finally, he spoke.
"I do apologize for my son's disgraceful behavior."
I let out a breathy laugh. For the first time ever, showing actual disrespect to the pack Alpha.
He didn't scold me. Didn't curse me out, like he usually did.
Like everyone usually did. So… only after I said yes to dying for them did he remember to apologize for Lucian?
"It's not like I hadn't warned you beforehand," he continued, his voice carefully neutral. "I told you, boys at that age like playing around. I did... there's nothing wrong with that... they are Alphas, after all."
My stomach recoiled. I wanted to retch. But I held it in.
"You're right," I whispered, my voice raspy.
"This world is cruel. So, thank you for taking care of me for this long… I hope Lucian… lives a wonderful life with his mate."
I smiled, softly, turning my head toward where I knew Alpha Theo was sitting.
Because death… was kinder than the life I had lived.
I had nothing left to live for now that the one person who I thought loved me had marked another Omega.