Chapter 1

"Let's dissolve our mate bond. It's just for show, to ease Elara's mind."

My Alpha husband, for the sake of his fragile white moonlight, kicked me out of the master bedroom for the nineteenth time, and now he's even demanding I sign an agreement to dissolve our Mate bond.

He looks down at me with patronizing generosity, his eyes full of certainty: "Once she leaves, I promise everything will return to normal. You'll always be my Luna."

He thinks I'll cry and beg for his meager scraps of affection like I did for the past five years.

But what he doesn't know is that the moment I signed my name without hesitation, my wolf had completely given up on him.

Aurora POV

"Father, I want to dissolve my Mate bond with Julian."

I gripped the phone, keeping my voice as steady as possible. "I'll handle the divorce procedures as soon as I can. This time I'm serious. I want to come home."

My father's voice came through the receiver, tinged with both heartache and relief. "Aurora, you've finally come to your senses. You never should have endured this humiliation in the first place. I'll arrange everything else. Within a month, you'll be back with the pack."

I hung up and looked at my pale, haggard reflection in the mirror, expressionless.

My wolf was now so exhausted she couldn't even manage a whimper.

The door was shoved open roughly.

Julian stood in the doorway, a powerful Alpha pressure sweeping in with his impatient aura.

"Elara's back." He strode into the master bedroom without so much as glancing at me, heading straight for the walk-in closet and dragging out the suitcase I'd already packed. "You know her mental state is fragile. She can't handle any stress."

Of course I knew.

Elara had once saved his life and supposedly suffered severe psychological trauma as a result, leaving her emotionally unstable. Whenever she got upset out in the world, she'd come running back to Stormborn Pack crying, seeking Julian's protection.

Julian was convinced that my identity as Stormborn Pack's "Luna" was the greatest source of stress for Elara.

In his view, as long as I still lived in this Packhouse, Elara would feel like she was the third party interfering in our Mate relationship, which would worsen her condition.

So every time Elara came back, I had to disappear like a ghost, vacate our master bedroom so he could comfort her.

Once Elara left, he'd bring me back.

Five years. Not one more, not one less. Exactly eighteen times.

And today was the nineteenth.

"She'll be staying at the Packhouse first," he said, setting the suitcase on the carpet. "I can't let her fall ill from guilt. I've already found you a place to stay."

I looked at that familiar suitcase without speaking, just silently beginning to pack my personal belongings.

This unusually calm compliance seemed to surprise him more than any hysterical crying would have.

He frowned, staring at me suspiciously. "Aurora, why are you being so cooperative today? What are you plotting now?"

No wonder he was suspicious.

After all, I hadn't been willing to play the doormat from the start.

The first time, my wolf was howling madly. I blocked his path crying, begging him not to send me away, only to be pushed aside coldly.

The fifth time, I smashed everything in the master bedroom, threatening to expose everything to the entire pack if he dared make me leave. He just looked at me coldly and called the guards to forcibly "escort" me out.

By the tenth time, I'd stopped resisting, just silently crying. That's when he came over and patted my head indulgently, saying, "That's better. Don't worry, you'll always be my Luna."

And the eighteenth time, just last month, I could already smile while helping him pick out clothes to wear when meeting Elara.

I looked up at this Mate I'd once loved deeply and shook my head calmly.

"I just think this whole thing is pretty pointless."

Just then, his phone rang.

The impatience on his face instantly transformed into tension and tenderness.

It was Elara.

Without avoiding me, he answered directly.

"Julian, the hallway here is so quiet. I'm scared alone in my room. When are you coming to get me?" Elara's voice trembled, sounding pitiful and vulnerable.

"Don't be afraid. I'll come over as soon as I finish up here." Julian coaxed her gently. "I had someone send you a bouquet of your favorite moonflowers to celebrate your return. They should be in your room already."

Elara asked with delight on the other end, "You still remember?"

"Of course."

My hands froze mid-fold in the air.

In college, every time he came to see me, he'd bring a bouquet of moonflowers. "These moonflowers suit you so well."

I'd been so happy then.

Turns out moonflowers were Elara's favorite.

Julian hung up and looked at me, his eyes full of warning.

"One hour. I'm going to pick her up, and you'd better be gone by the time I get back."

Seeing no reaction from me, he reached out and touched my face with something almost like pity, his voice softening. "Be good. Elara never stays long when she comes back. I'll bring you home again when she leaves."

With that, he turned and strode away without a trace of reluctance.

I sat alone in the empty master bedroom, not moving immediately.

Through the Mind-link, I contacted my personal pack lawyer.

"The mate bond dissolution agreement. You can start preparing it."

I didn't go to the place he'd arranged, but to the place my father had set up for me.

That was my only true refuge.

For three days, Julian didn't contact me once.

I was happy for the peace and quiet.

On the fourth night, I habitually scrolled through my social media feed.

A glaring photo caught my eye.

Posted by Elara.

In the picture, Elara wore my silk robe, sitting on the wool carpet in our master bedroom's living room, holding a steaming cup of tea.

Julian sat on the sofa behind her, looking down at documents, his profile bathed in the warm yellow light from the floor lamp, looking exceptionally gentle.

The caption read: "With Julian here, all my anxiety disappears."

I stared at that photo for a long time.

That robe was my favorite. The cuffs were embroidered with my initials in silver thread.

I'd left it in the walk-in closet when I moved out.

Elara hadn't just taken my master bedroom and my Mate—now she could freely use my personal belongings too.

In the comments below, several of Julian's friends were leaving messages.

"Is this an official announcement of a Luna replacement?"

"Has Alpha Julian finally come to his senses?"

Julian neither liked nor replied to any of them.

But I knew his silence was a form of consent.

I turned off my phone screen. The black glass reflected my expressionless face.