Chapter2

My father froze. "What?"

"I confess to stealing the bloodline token. I did it, so handle it according to the pack's rules."

"Wren, don't act out of spite." My father's face darkened. "The moon-silver choker is tied to the heir's bloodline scent. Once an official record is left, the Elder Council will deem your wolf spirit untrustworthy, and you won't be able to keep your elite guard qualifications."

Wren's eyes instantly lit up when she heard the words "elite guard."

"I know. Summon the Enforcers."

Twenty minutes later, three Enforcers entered the main estate. They recorded my confession, pricked my fingertip, and sealed my blood into the dossier. Since the token was already recovered and my father chose not to press charges, I was spared from corporal punishment, but the confession remained on my official record.

Right before leaving, the Enforcer asked, "Wren, are you certain you took the choker?"

"I am certain."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Wren standing in the shadows of the corridor. A moon-crystal flashed a faint blue in her palm—she had recorded my entire confession. In that moment, a very faint scent of excitement drifted from her. It was the scent a hunter exuded only when watching their prey walk willingly into a trap.

My mother ordered the servants not to spread the word. Rubbing her temples to soothe a headache, she sighed, "She's still counting on joining the elite guards. Let's not truly ruin her path."

Wren linked arms with her obediently. "Don't worry, Luna. I won't say a word."

As she said this, her hand resting by her side quietly gripped the edge of her clothes.

On the sixth day, I was polishing crossbow bolts in the armory when the head instructor's voice echoed through the pack's mind link. "Wren, report to the training ground's main tent immediately. Someone reported you for stealing the bloodline token, and the confession has already been sent to the Elder Council."

Wren was waiting for me at the entrance to the training grounds. She sniffed my scent and chuckled. "Your elite qualifications are probably gone. You're stuck with my defective wolf spirit now—no bloodline, no background. The only thing you can show for yourself is the combat record you risked your life for all these years."

I reached out to lift the tent flap, but she blocked my way. "Beg me just once, and I'll go in right now and say the choker incident was a misunderstanding."

"No need." I sidestepped her and entered the main tent.

Wren's combat dossiers—detailing her four consecutive years of placing first in assessments—were spread across the head instructor's desk. He slammed his hand down on them. "Your name is already carved into the selection roster. Why did you have to mess up at a time like this?"

I lowered my eyes. "I'm sorry, Instructor."

"I don't need your apologies." He suppressed his anger. "The Alpha didn't give you a harsh punishment. As long as Lady Aurora is willing to testify that this was merely a family misunderstanding, I can still petition to clear the stain on your wolf spirit. Don't do anything stupid."

Just then, he caught sight of Wren standing outside. "Lady Aurora, was the choker incident truly a misunderstanding?"

Wren didn't answer directly. "Instructor, I'd like to have a word with Wren alone."

Once we stepped outside, the pity on her face vanished without a trace. "Your entire future rests on a single word from me. Are you still refusing to beg?"

I looked right at her. "Do you really want to hear it that badly?"

"Of course."

"Then I'm probably going to disappoint you."

She glared at me for a few seconds before spinning around and marching back into the tent. "Instructor, she definitely took the choker. I could let it go, but if the Alpha wipes away her stain, would that be fair to the other wolves who bleed to earn their spots through combat merits?"

The tent fell silent for a long time. As I was leaving, the head instructor called out and shoved a contract into my hands. "You signed a wolf spirit forging contract before coming of age. Your wolf spirit was congenitally defective. Over the years, the pack continuously provided you with potions and hired priests to stabilize your soul mark. The contract stipulates that if you lose your elite qualifications due to your own faults, the pack has the right to reclaim everything they invested in you."

I flipped to the very last page. "One million moon-silver coins?"

"Just about. That's exactly why I told you to beg the Alpha. Wren, don't back yourself into a dead end."

I closed the contract. "There's no need. Just handle it according to the pack's rules."

Three days later, the Elder Council issued an official notice: My elite qualifications were revoked, the forging contract was terminated, and I was given a strict deadline to return the one million moon-silver coins.

I stood staring at the notice board when the sound of Wren's footsteps approached from behind me.

"Without the Alpha bloodline, the only thing this body can rely on is its combat record. And now, even that path is completely severed. Does it hurt?"

Her fingertip tapped gently against the massive debt. "One million moon-silver coins. How exactly are you going to pay it back?"