<h4>Chapter 129: Chapter 129: The Past</h4>


    Selene’s POV~


    The next morning, Sara and I were put to work like the rest of the omegas. The head maid had already barked her orders before sunrise, and soon we were scrubbing, sweeping, and carrying things from one corner of the quarters to the other.


    It didn’t take long for whispers to surround us. Omegas always talked while they worked, and every word carried fast through the halls.


    But none of it was good.


    They gossiped about punishments, about who had displeased which wolf, about how strict the alphas were bing. The pack was restless...


    Sara tried to ignore it, but I kept my ears sharp. Every little piece of information mattered.


    Later, when our chores eased, Sara and I walked through the narrow paths of the quarters, pretending to explore but really listening. That was when it happened.


    Two young omega girls were huddled near theundry lines, their heads bent close together. Their voices were low, but I caught every word.


    "Did you hear?" one whispered, her eyes bright with excitement. "Alpha Kael is back."


    I froze in ce. My heart stumbled, my steps halting before I could stop myself.


    "Really?" the other girl gasped. "Did he finally find his mate?"


    The first girl sighed, her voice almost pitying. "No... still nothing. They’ve been searching for her for more than a year now. Poor alphas... who would’ve thought their mate would turn out to be their enemy’s daughter? And when they finally found her, they lost her again."


    I couldn’t breathe. My chest felt as if it had been pierced.


    The girl continued, her tone hushed but cruel in its honesty. "They say she fell from a cliff. I think she’s already dead. But Alpha Kael refuses to believe it. He’s been searching nonstop, even leaving the pack for months at a time. Everyone says he won’t stop until he knows for sure."


    The other girl shook her head. "Do you think he’ll stay this time? Or leave again?"


    Their words blurred in my ears, each syble cutting deeper.


    Then came the worst.


    "I still don’t understand," one of them muttered. "She killed their mother. Our former Luna. How could the moon goddess give such a cruel twist of fate? How could the alphas ever ept her?"


    "Because in front of your mate, nothing else matters," the other replied dreamily. "The bond is too strong. Even pain can’t break it. That’s what they say... that being with your mate feels better than anything else. I wish I could find mine someday."


    Sara touched my arm lightly, but I could barely feel her. My skin had gone cold, my blood rushing in my ears.


    They were talking about me.


    Every word, every whisper was about me. About the bond I carried, about the life I had run from, about the crime I could never erase.


    I could not move.


    The words from those omegas struck me harder than any blow ever could. She killed their mother. That was what they said. That was how they spoke of me.


    I could not stop myself from asking that question—did they actually see me as the murderer of their Luna? How could they just believe this? They knew nothing of what happened back then and why it happened. Then why?


    Suddenly, all those memories rushed back to me, from that night I tried to forget... tried to bury in the deepest part of my heart that would never be opened again. But now, their words suddenly brought that terrifying night back.


    I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing down the tears that burned hot and heavy. I couldn’t cry here. I wouldn’t. I had fought too long to lock those memories away, to survive without drowning in them. I couldn’t let them break me now.


    When I opened my eyes again, the omegas were gone. Only Sara and I remained in the quiet corner of the quarters.


    Sara was watching me. I felt her gaze, filled with worry. She noticed the way my body shook, the way my eyes must have looked strange, but she said nothing. She didn’t question me.


    But I could tell—something bold was stirring in her mind, a question she wanted to ask but dared not speak aloud.


    I was grateful for her silence. I wasn’t ready to face her questions.


    Just as I thought the day could not get worse, a suddenmotion broke out in the pack house. I could hear the sound of angry growls and shouts. It actually felt like something really bad had happened, something causing so much unrest.


    Sara and I exchanged a nce before following the noise. My heart raced with each step as we made our way through the pack grounds, toward the center where the pack house loomed tall.


    When we arrived, a circle of warriors had formed at the gate. All of them stood straight and tall like daring the person opposite them to cross. The air was thick with hostility, the kind that could break into violence any moment.


    But the pressure was also great from the other side, and I realized that even the wall of these powerful men could not subdue the man standing opposite them.


    Who was so powerful that he could challenge all of the pack warriors? Was he from the same pack? I didn’t think so. Werewolves from the same pack were always united, and even when they challenged one another, it was a friendly spar—not like this, filled with hostility.


    <fn8a09> N?w ?ovel chapt?rs are published on </fn8a09>


    And my desire to see the man grew stronger, overwhelming. After struggling for a long time, I finally caught a glimpse of him.


    At first, only his presence struck me—the way he stood tall and unshaken even against so many wolves, his power radiating from him like heat from a fire. He was no ordinary man.


    And then his eyes lifted.


    Our gazes met.


    The world seemed to stop. My breath caught in my throat, my chest locking as if invisible chains wrapped around me. I couldn’t look away. I couldn’t even breathe.


    His stare was steady, piercing, like it reached through the crowd and found only me.