Third Person’s POV
Velda braced her hands against the ground. Her mint–green pheromones turned sour, and the healing mark on the back of her neck itched sharply.
Her wolf cowered in her mind, ears drooping and tail curled nervously between her legs.
She shouted, “Stop! Please stop!”
As Adide bent down, silver–blue blood seeped from her knuckles. Her cedar pheromones,ced with the chill of fir, pressed against the floor.
Her pupils slit into dark gold, and the wolf–head pendant on her corbone grew hot. “Can’t take it anymore? You once sneered at she–wolves who fought over Alphas. So why are you here today? To have me persuade Gloria not to mate with Ulrik?” Adide’s voice was sharp. “Remember this, Velda. Your past arrogance is now matched by your humiliation.”
A broken howl escaped Velda’s throat, her mint–green pheromones thrown into chaos.
She trembled, wanting to retort but reminded of her recent fights with Ulrik over his n to bond with Gloria<i>. </i>
Her nails elongated instinctively, scraping sparks against the stone floor. “I didn’t—”
Adide’s wolf eyes zed, her moon goddess ne ring with silver light.
“1
The Frostfang Pack Alpha’s aura pierced Velda’s neck like an ice pick. “Remember well–those deaths are on you. Be grateful I’ve left the Frostfang Pack. Without my family’s rules, I’d tear you to pieces.”
Opening the door, Adide found the snow had turned into a heavy downfall. Snowkes like salt grains nketed the ground, the sky dark and the snow falling faster.
Adide’s voice was colder than the blizzard outside, “Compensate the fifty thousand for the vase, then leave and never return. Or I will kill you.”
Velda shuddered with fear.
She knew Adide’s threat was genuine.
Rising unsteadily, she checked her pockets and said helplessly, “I don’t have the money here.”
“Valentin,” Adide ordered coolly, “have the treasurer draft a fifty–thousand–dor IOU. Let her sign it. We’ll collect tomorrow.”
Valentin’s eyes dark with authority, acknowledged and left to handle the task.
As the Frostfang Pack’s Beta, his pheromones radiated uncontestable dominance.
Velda stumbled out of the Frostfang Pack’s square, leaning against a pir, gasping for air.
<b>+20 </b>Free <b>Coins </b>
The cold wind whipped her tattered cloak, exposing the wolfsbane<b>–</b>scarred mark on her neck.
She shook with cold, yet her forehead glistened with cold <b>sweat</b>.
She was a mess–moments of utter despair alternating with futile attempts to regain her former dignity before Adide, which she couldn’t even stand straight to attempt.
The ghosts of civilians ughtered in Snowdeer Town flickered before her eyes, their screams merging with the curses of the Western Tribe’s royal heir–the one whose nds were ripped out while he still screamed the Moon Goddess’s name.
How had she been so cold back then, even finding twisted pleasure in it?
She retched against the pir, bile rising in her throat.
Blood seeped through her fingers, dyeing the snow crimson.
She dared not meet Adide’s gaze again–those icy eyes like a drawn de.
Every word Adide spoke was a truth she didn’t want to hear but couldn’t deny.
She had desperately sought glory at the Bloodscar Border.
Convinced she’d earned top honors, she transformed from an ordinary warrior’s daughter into Gamma Velda<i>. </i>
She grew arrogant, viewing others as inferior, yet knew her birth was still lowly.
Otherwise, with her merits at that time, if she had be Ulrik’s mistress, others might not have agreed.
She had agreed for two reasons: First, she truly admired Ulrik, and second, she knew that without her merits in battle, she would never have been able to join the Bloodmoon Pack.
She’d told Ulrik she disdained family politics, preferring the battlefield–a performance for his benefit.
He’d believed her, his eyes filled with admiration.
She wanted him to see she was different from other she–wolves.
And she seeded–in securing their rtionship before returning to the capital, obtaining his temporary mark to ensure her ce in the Bloodmoon Pack.
As for Ulrik’s true Luna, Adide, she hadn’t taken her seriously at all.
She thought that she–wolves from strong packs were always rule–followers, boringly proper and weak- minded.
But Adide had the Frostfang Pack’s wealth. If she managed the pack’s finances, money would be no
issue<b>. </b>
She nned to advance her career. Even as Ulrik’s mistress, her status would surpass the “Luna” once she
<b>2/3 </b>
held real power.
But Adide turned out to be not a docile cat, but a hidden tiger, patient and strategic.