Third Person's POV
Aria had always believed that protecting Marcus was the purpose the Moon Goddess had given her.
She was five years older than her younger brother, and from the time they were pups, she had quietly taken responsibility for him. Even as children running through the forested lands of their pack territory, she had always walked a step behind him—watching, guarding, making sure nothing would harm him.
But when tragedy struck their family, Aria had been only sixteen, while Marcus was still an eleven-year-old boy who barely understood what death truly meant.
Their parents—both loyal warriors of the pack—had died during a brutal attack by rogues along the border of their territory. The battle had been sudden and merciless, and by the time the pack arrived to drive the rogues away, it was already too late.
From that moment on, the siblings were left alone beneath the watchful eyes of the pack.
Yet long before that tragedy, Aria’s future had already been quietly tied to another.
From the day she was born, the elders of two influential families within the pack had agreed that one day she and Caleb would be joined as mates.
Such arrangements were not uncommon among powerful pack bloodlines. They were meant to strengthen alliances, preserve stability within the territory, and ensure unity among the wolves who carried the pack’s future.
It had never been meant to force two wolves into a loveless bond—only to guide the paths their lives would take.
Fortunately, what had begun as a promise between families slowly blossomed into something genuine.
Aria and Caleb had grown up within the same territory, training under the same elders and learning the ancient traditions of their kind together.
From a young age, their wolves had always been comfortable around one another. Even before their mate bond awakened, there had been an unspoken pull between them—something deeper than simple friendship.
Their personalities were remarkably alike.
Both were stubborn.
Both fiercely loyal.
Both willing to protect the people they loved with tooth and claw if necessary.
Because of those similarities, affection had grown between them naturally over the years.
By the time they reached adulthood, what had once been nothing more than an agreement between two families had become something far more powerful.
It had become love.
When Caleb turned twenty-one, his father—who had served as one of the pack’s leading Alphas in the council—passed away after a long illness.
With his death, Caleb inherited both his father’s responsibilities and the heavy expectations that came with them.
Leadership was never an easy burden.
And yet Caleb carried it with determination.
Clara, his younger stepsister, was the daughter Caleb’s father had with his second mate later in life. Though Caleb had never truly felt comfortable around the woman his father had chosen as his second Luna, he cared deeply for Clara.
On his father’s final night, beneath the pale glow of the Moon Goddess, Caleb had made a promise.
He would always protect his younger sister.
No matter the cost.
Clara and her mother had always treated Aria kindly as well, and for many years their relationship appeared peaceful and harmonious within the pack.
Meanwhile, Marcus grew into a cheerful and hardworking young wolf.
Despite losing their parents so young, he never allowed bitterness to take root in his heart.
When he turned eighteen, he met Sophia during their final year of training at the pack’s warrior academy—a place where young wolves learned to control their transformations, hone their strength, and understand the ancient laws that governed their kind.
What began as a simple friendship soon deepened into genuine love.
Two years later, beneath the light of the full moon, Marcus asked Sophia to become his future Luna.
She accepted without hesitation.
Their engagement was celebrated warmly throughout the pack. The elders blessed their union, and many believed the two young wolves would bring prosperity and happiness to the territory in the years to come.
Everything seemed perfect.
But while Marcus was happily building his future, someone else had already begun watching him with growing resentment.
And that person’s jealousy would soon destroy everything.
Among werewolves, jealousy was often described as the most poisonous sickness that could infect a wolf’s heart.
Once it took root, it spread like wildfire—devouring reason, loyalty, and love until nothing remained.
And when that fire burned long enough, it destroyed everything in its path.
Even the one who carried it.
---
Weeks passed beneath the watchful gaze of the Moon Goddess.
Just as Caleb had declared during their final argument, a formal mate rejection decree was delivered to Aria at the packhouse. The parchment bore the Alpha seal of his family and the mark of the pack council, leaving no doubt that the process had already been set into motion.
Along with it came the official accusation against Marcus—an allegation that he had attempted to dishonor Clara.
Not long after, several pack warriors arrived at Aria’s home.
Under the authority of the elders and the Alpha council, Marcus was taken into custody to await judgment before the pack.
Neither Aria nor Marcus were surprised by the arrest.
They had known this moment would come.
The Wolfhart they had long feared—the formal trial where the truth of a wolf’s crime was judged beneath the law of the pack—had finally been called.
Even so, deep inside Aria’s heart, a fragile thread of hope still remained.
She believed her marriage could survive this storm.
In her mind, severing a mate bond was never meant to be the answer. A bond blessed beneath the sacred light of the Moon Goddess was not something to discard lightly. It was a sacred tie between two wolves—one that should never be broken without absolute certainty.
She believed she and Caleb should wait until the elders uncovered the truth before making a decision that could never be undone.
But Caleb refused to listen.
---
The mate rejection decree felt unusually heavy in Aria’s hands as she stood before the house that had once been her home.
The Alpha’s residence.
For a long moment, she simply stood there, staring at the familiar wooden doors carved with the ancient symbols of the pack. This place had once been filled with warmth, laughter, and the quiet comfort that only bonded mates could share.
Now it felt cold.
Distant.
Unfamiliar.
Slowly, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The air smelled the same—cedarwood, fire smoke, and the lingering scent of Caleb’s wolf—but the warmth that once lived in those walls had vanished.
Even though everything between them had already begun to crumble, Aria still wanted to speak with him one last time.
Ending a relationship was painful enough.
But ending a mate bond blessed beneath the Moon Goddess was far more serious. It was not something wolves treated lightly. A bond tied by fate and sealed by the Moon was sacred.
It should never be broken without a final conversation.
She opened her mouth to call his name.
But before the sound could leave her lips, something else reached her ears.
A faint groan.
Low.
Breathy.
It came from the bedroom.
Aria froze instantly.
Her wolf stirred uneasily inside her mind, lifting its head in alarm as she listened more carefully.
She recognized that voice.
It was Caleb.
But the soft moan that followed did not belong to her.
The realization struck her like lightning.
Blood roared in her ears as her heart seemed to stop beating entirely.
Moments later, the bedroom door swung open.
Caleb stepped into the hallway.
He was half dressed, his shirt hanging loose and his hair disheveled, completely unaware of her presence.
He walked forward casually—
Until his eyes suddenly landed on the pale feet standing before him.
His steps stopped.
Slowly, his gaze lifted.
Up her legs.
Up to her trembling hands.
Until it finally met her eyes.
Electric gray.
Aria’s expression was empty.
Hollow.
She looked as though her soul had already left her body.
Caleb’s face drained of all color.
Shock and guilt flashed across his features as the truth dawned on him.
She had seen everything.
Neither of them moved.
She stared at him in silent disappointment.
He stood frozen in horror.
Then footsteps sounded from the doorway behind them.
Lupas entered the house.
He was one of the pack scribes, a wolf tasked by the elders to witness important legal rites—especially those involving the breaking of sacred bonds.
When he noticed the tense silence in the room, his brows furrowed slightly.
Without saying a word, Aria calmly reached into her satchel and pulled out the parchment bearing the mate rejection decree.
Beside it was a small ceremonial blade used during rejection rites.
To Caleb’s complete disbelief, she signed the parchment immediately with steady hands, then pricked her finger with the blade. A drop of her blood stained the document, sealing her consent to the severing of their bond.
She handed the parchment to Lupas.
The scribe accepted it slowly, his expression filled with pity.
“My Luna…” he began gently. “You still have time to reconsider. A bond blessed by the Moon Goddess is not easily broken. Both of you may still speak before this becomes permanent.”
Aria let out a faint, humorless laugh.
“Every bond has its limits, Lupas,” she said quietly.
“Once those limits are crossed… there is nothing left to repair.”
She turned her gaze toward Caleb.
Tears shimmered in his eyes.
“Our bond crossed that limit today.”
Just then, a voice called from the bedroom.
“Caleb… where are—”
A young woman stepped out of the room, wrapped only in a blanket.
The moment she noticed Lupas standing there—and Aria beside him—her eyes widened in shock. Embarrassment flooded her face before she hurriedly retreated back inside the room.
The scribe grimaced slightly in disgust.
Aria, however, did not react at all.
Her expression remained eerily calm.
“Once the rejection rite is complete, send me a copy of the council record,” she said quietly.
Lupas nodded.
Without waiting for a reply, Aria walked past Caleb and toward the door.
He remained rooted to the spot.
His heart screamed at him to chase after her.
To beg for forgiveness.
To stop her from leaving.
But his feet refused to move.
Because deep down, he already knew the truth.
He was the one who had destroyed everything.
After a long moment, Caleb slowly reached for the parchment with trembling hands.
His chest tightened painfully as he pricked his own finger and let his blood fall onto the document beside hers.
The rejection rite was complete.
The mate bond between them shattered.
Far away from the house, as Aria walked beneath the fading evening sky, she felt the invisible thread connecting their souls finally snap.
Her wolf let out a long, mournful howl inside her mind.
But Aria did not stop walking.
Because in that moment, she realized something with absolute clarity.
From this day forward, her only goal was to fight for her brother’s justice.
She would do whatever it took to prove Marcus’s innocence—
Even if it meant standing against the entire pack alone.
