(Rosienne’s POV)
The entire classroom became silent.
Darius looked around coldly before speaking again.
"Then answer me this. Can any of you swear beneath the Moon Goddess that every one of your parents and blood ancestors lived without sin?"
One by one, the students lowered their heads in shame.
I was moved too. I fell for the sharp justice in his words and the calm confidence in his voice.
So when Darius asked me to become his mate, I agreed.
Truthfully, before meeting him, I had never once thought about love. My mother's scandal left deep wounds inside me, and I carried those shadows everywhere.
Then Darius appeared like moonlight breaking through darkness. Slowly, he warmed every cold corner of my heart.
And now I stood beneath the heavy rain, unable to understand anything anymore.
How did the man who once saved me become this stranger?
Darkness suddenly swallowed my vision. I collapsed onto the ground.
When I woke again, night had already fallen across the territory.
I was lying inside the healer's chamber with a spirit drip connected to the back of my hand. Moon infused medicine flowed slowly into my veins.
The healer spoke softly, "Your emotions have been unstable for too long. You need proper rest and peace."
"Okay."
The word had barely left my mouth when my crystal communicator rang.
It was Darius.
I hesitated several times before finally answering.
"Greyla's gown got stained," he said immediately. "Go bring over the Selene Vaultere dress I prepared for you. She needs another one for tonight."
So her name was Greyla…
I repeated it silently in my heart.
The Selene Vaultere gown...
Darius once hired royal designers from the western Alpha Kingdom to create it according to my exact measurements.
It was meant to be worn during our future mating ceremony.
Back then, he would not even allow others to touch it. He said even fingerprints would ruin its meaning.
Now he casually handed it to another woman.
Perhaps it truly meant nothing anymore.
Still...
"Darius, I'm still receiving treatment right now."
"You're not dying, are you? Why do you even need treatment?" His voice turned cold. "Do not test my patience tonight, or you will regret it."
Fine…
I would do this one final thing for him. A repayment for the kindness he once gave me.
I asked the healer to remove the needle before the medicine finished. Then I left the clinic, stepped back into the storm, returned home by carriage wolf, took the gown, and rushed toward the grand hotel without stopping once.
Darius spoke again over the crystal communicator, "Greyla is waiting at the entrance. She wants to thank you personally. Behave properly when you meet her."
I quietly hummed in response before ending the call. But the thing Greyla gave me was not gratitude.
It was a slap across my face.
I never saw it coming.
My head snapped to the side as my body stumbled backward. The gown slipped from my hands and fell onto the wet ground.
Greyla instantly burst into tears. Her voice trembled pitifully.
"If you didn't want to bring the gown, you could've simply refused. Why throw it onto the ground like that?"
I had never been skilled at understanding hidden meanings.
I couldn’t understand what game she was playing.
But Darius understood immediately. He rushed out of the hotel within seconds.
Greyla quickly clung to him.
"Darius, is this what you meant when you promised she would behave? That she would not cause trouble for me?"
Darius lowered his eyes toward the gown lying on the ground. And just like that, he made his decision.
Another slap struck my face hard.
"I've spoiled you too much," he said coldly. "Apologize to Greyla. Right now."
I laughed softly. The kind of laugh born from anger that had already broken past its limit.
"Darius, can you even hear yourself?" I asked bitterly. "Did you once ask where the handprint on my cheek came from?"
Greyla did not even try hiding the truth. She held onto Darius's sleeve and looked up innocently.
"I slapped her. Will you blame me for it, Darius? I only got angry because she threw the dress onto the ground. I couldn't control my temper."
"You know my personality," she continued softly. "I've always been sensitive."
Darius wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close.
"I'm not angry," he said gently. "She deserved it."
Greyla looked at me with a victorious smile. I smiled back. Tears rolled down my face, yet I still smiled.
The true fool here was me. But even a fool only needed to endure three more days.
Three days later, I would disappear completely from their world.
Darius, I truly hope you do not become the same kind of man who destroyed my mother.
