Chapter 1

The first thing I did after being reborn was cut open my own chest. I took out my heart, sealed it inside a blood crystal, and handed it to the dark warlock.

In my past life, Scarlett, the childhood sweetheart of my Alpha mate, Alex, secretly brought three Pack members she barely knew into the Vito family’s private estate.

While no one was watching, she slipped into Alex’s study, stole the classified defense plans, and sold them to a rival Pack. Several of our warriors died in a border ambush because of her.

When the truth came out, the three Pack members she’d brought into the estate swore under oath that I was the one who’d leaked the plans.

I tried to explain. I would never betray my own Pack.

But Scarlett threw herself into Alex’s arms, crying like the innocent one.

“Alex, I know Rowena’s never liked me. But I never thought she’d put the whole Pack in danger just to compete for your attention.”

Alex’s fury surged through our mate bond, cold and suffocating.

“Rowena, you’re my mate. You’re the only one who can access my memories through the mate bond.”

“If it wasn’t you, then who else could have known where those secrets were kept?”

The Elder Council convicted me as a traitor. They put me through every kind of torment they could think of. I died on the tribunal grounds.

When I opened my eyes again, I tore out my heart, severing the mate bond that tied me to Alex.

This time, let’s see how she plans to frame me.

Chapter 1

"Everyone, welcome to the Shadowmoon Pack! I'm Scarlett. I happen to be free today, and I thought I'd take you all to visit a friend's estate."

"They have a private horse stable and a gallery full of rare weapons. You can look around as much as you like!"

The moment I heard Scarlett's familiar voice, my whole body jolted. Then it hit me.

I'd been reborn.

In my last life, this was exactly when Scarlett had offered to bring her newly acquainted Pack friends to Alex's estate for a visit.

The others lit up immediately.

"Seriously? That's the Vito family heir's estate, isn't it?"

"Scarlett, you're close enough with Alex to just walk into his private estate?"

Scarlett waved her hand with a laugh, her face full of pride barely disguised as modesty.

"We've known each other since we were kids. He's always been so good to me. We're all Pack, right? What's the harm in a little visit?"

Everyone looked at her with envy.

Then Scarlett turned to me.

"Rowena, I heard his estate has really tight security. Outsiders can't even get in."

"You're Alex's fated mate, aren't you? You must have a way to get us inside?"

I looked down at my crest and didn't answer.

Scarlett immediately linked her arm through mine.

"Come on, Rowena. Just help us out! The estate guards know your crest. As long as you bring us along, they'll let us right through."

She blinked at me, her voice dripping with that coaxing sweetness.

"Besides, it's not every day we all get to know each other. I just want to show everyone Alex's estate. You wouldn't refuse such a small favor, would you?"

Watching that entitled expression on her face, my breathing grew sharp.

In my past life, I'd said yes.

Once inside the estate, Scarlett had acted like she owned the place, parading her new friends through every room.

Whenever she saw something she liked, she told them to help themselves. She even led them into restricted areas.

"Don't worry, take whatever you want. Alex and I are so close, he'd never get upset over something like this."

She'd said it with such conviction, as if the entire estate belonged to her.

I'd even warned her back then that Alex's study and the guard tower were private, off-limits without permission.

Scarlett had agreed to my face. Then the moment my back was turned, she'd slipped into Alex's study.

She stole the defense plans and classified records stored inside, then sold the intel to an enemy pack.

Before long, border guards were ambushed. Several Pack members died.

And Scarlett pinned it all on me.

She claimed that only I, with a mate bond to Alex, could have accessed those secrets through our bond.

Alex believed her.

He didn't even give me a chance to explain before deciding I'd betrayed him and the entire Pack.

After that, I was stripped of my title as Luna, branded a traitor, and in the end, I died under the hatred of my own people.

The memory of that suffering made my blood run cold.

This time, I would never let Scarlett use me again.

I lifted my head and pulled my arm free from hers.

"Sorry. I can't take you in."

The smile on Scarlett's face froze.

"Why not?"

"If you want a tour, get Alex to approve it himself. Without his permission, I'm not bringing any of you through those gates."

The atmosphere shifted instantly.

Scarlett's eyes went red, and she looked at me with that wounded expression.

"Rowena, I just wanted to take everyone out for a good time. Do you not like me? Is that why you won't help?"

The others immediately jumped in to back her up.

"Rowena, we're all going to be Pack members. Do you really have to be this stingy about it?"

"Scarlett already said she's close with Alex. What's the big deal about visiting his estate?"

I looked at them coldly.

"If you think there's no problem, then go ask Alex for permission yourselves."

The words had barely left my mouth when Alex appeared from behind the crowd.

He'd clearly heard the argument. His brow furrowed, and he went straight to Scarlett's side.

"Rowena, what are you making a fuss about now?"

Scarlett immediately lowered her head and bit her lip.

"Alex, I'm sorry. I just wanted to bring some new friends to see your estate. Rowena probably thinks I shouldn't have..."

She didn't accuse me outright. She just wore every ounce of hurt on her face.

Alex's expression darkened on cue.

"It's just a day at the estate. Was it really necessary to shut her down that hard? Scarlett isn't some stranger. Just bring them in."

I looked at him, and the last thread of hope inside me went dark.

"The estate is yours. I have no authority to decide who comes and goes."

"Since you think it's fine, tell your guards to let them through on your orders. Why does it have to be me bringing them in?"

The question caught Alex off guard, and irritation flashed across his face. He shoved me.

"Rowena, you're going to be the Pack's Luna someday."

"If you can't even handle something this small, how are you ever going to fit in?"

I couldn't help but laugh.

In my last life, it was because I trusted him that I personally escorted the thief who stole his secrets and sold out his people right through the front gate.

This time, I would never make the same mistake.

Chapter 2

I fought through the pain and got back on my feet, then swung my hand and slapped Alex across the face.

"Alex, you put your hands on me for Scarlett? Don't forget how much my family has done for this Pack over the years."

"Since you're so set on protecting her, consider our mate contract voided. Go ahead and be her devoted big brother."

The moment I mentioned dissolving the mate contract, Alex's face changed.

"Rowena, what kind of tantrum is this?"

"Scarlett is like a sister I watched grow up. You're going to be the Pack's Luna. Taking care of her should be second nature."

"I'm doing this so you'll fit in better down the line."

I curled my lip. "Alex, do you really think I'm that stupid?"

"Dissolve the mate contract, and your little sister, the other Pack members, none of them are my responsibility anymore."

I grabbed my things and turned to leave.

Behind me, Alex erupted.

"Rowena, with that high-and-mighty attitude of yours, who else would even want you besides me?"

"All you do is humiliate people. You have no idea how to show respect. No wonder nobody likes you!"

I was so angry I actually laughed.

When he'd needed my family's resources and support to solidify his standing in the Pack, he'd never once felt humiliated.

The expensive gifts I'd given him? He'd accepted every single one without batting an eye. Never showed a hint of displeasure.

If he thought my help was humiliating, then he could return everything he owed me from all those years.

I took out my phone and called my lawyer right away. I told him to pull together every record of the money, resources, and guarantees I’d given Alex over the years.

That night, I couldn’t shake a bad feeling. In the end, I decided to go home.

Back at the estate, I found out my crest was gone!

Then it came back to me. That afternoon, when Alex and I were going at it, the crest had fallen to the ground.

I’d just tossed it in my bag without thinking. Scarlett must have grabbed it in all the chaos.

My mind went to the dark warlock who lived deep in the forest.

Rumor had it he could use ancient magic to take a werewolf’s heart out for a while. They could even stay alive for some time after the heart left their body.

But the heart had to be returned before the elixir wore off.

I didn't hesitate. That very night, I left the estate alone and went to find the dark warlock.

He looked at me, his voice like gravel.

"Once the heart leaves your body, you'll have a limited window of time. When the elixir wears off, there's no going back."

I met his gaze and answered calmly.

"I want you to remove my heart and seal it in a blood crystal. Keep it safe for me. When this is all over, I'll come back for it."

The ancient ritual began in the dim stone chamber.

When the searing pain hit, I clenched my jaw so hard my teeth ached. I didn't make a sound.

The heart, still faintly beating, was lifted from my chest.

The dark warlock sealed it inside the blood crystal, then handed me a vial of dark red elixir.

"Drink it. It will keep you alive without a heart for a while, but the effect is limited."

"When the time is up, you must come back. Otherwise, no one can save you."

I took the vial and drank it in one swallow.

The liquid slid down my throat, and an strange force spread through my entire body. My weakened limbs gradually regained their strength, and I stood like a normal person again.

Only I knew that I was no longer the same.

I left the blood crystal in the warlock's keeping, agreed on when I'd return for my heart, and went home alone.

The next day, my mother noticed how pale I looked and immediately took my hand, her face tight with worry.

"Rowena, what's wrong? Are you feeling sick? Should I call a healer?"

I shook my head and forced a smile.

"I'm fine, Mom. I just didn't sleep well last night."

She still wasn't satisfied and kept reminding me to rest.

I didn't tell her the truth. I didn't want her dragged into the storm that was coming.

That night, I stood alone at the window, looking out toward the Vito estate in the distance. I knew Scarlett wouldn't give up so easily on getting close to Alex.

And Alex would still believe every word she said without question.

But this time, no matter what so-called evidence they produced, they could never pin the blame on me the way they had in my past life.

Chapter 3

The next day, my mother still couldn't let it go and took me to the Healing Sanctuary.

She went off with the registration form to find a healer, telling me to wait for her.

I nodded and sat quietly on the bench.

A few minutes later, a burst of commotion broke out around me.

"Rowena? What are you doing here?"

"Oh my god, it's really her! Wasn't she accused of betraying the Pack and leaking defense secrets?"

"The Elder Council already opened an investigation on her, and she has the nerve to just sit here like nothing happened!"

I frowned.

"I didn't betray the Pack. Why shouldn't I be here?"

Before the words had fully settled, a hand grabbed my arm and yanked me off the bench.

"Rowena, how dare you show your face! Come with me to the Elder Council and confess everything you've done!"

I recognized Alex's voice and shook his hand off.

"Alex, have you lost your mind? I haven't done anything. Why would I go to the Elder Council?"

Scarlett stepped forward immediately, putting on her most earnest expression.

"Rowena, please stop being so stubborn. Those were our Pack's defense secrets!"

"Because of the leak, border guards were attacked by a rival pack. People have already died."

"If you admit what you did now, maybe the Elder Council will consider going easier on you."

I shoved her aside.

"What are you even talking about? I never leaked any secrets. Why should I confess to anything?"

Suddenly, a large man charged forward and grabbed my collar.

"You're the one who sold our defense plans to the enemy pack, aren't you?"

His eyes were bloodshot, his voice shaking with rage.

"My brother was on that border patrol! He trusted his own people, and he died in an ambush!"

"Do you know he had a wife and children? You traitor. What gives you the right to still be alive after getting them killed?"

He shoved me hard to the ground. My whole body throbbed with pain.

I struggled to explain. "You've got the wrong person! I didn't sell any intel. I never even touched those defense records!"

Seeing me on the ground, Scarlett jumped in right away.

"I know Rowena's family is powerful. I know she's going to be the Pack's Luna."

"But no matter who she is, she can't use her status and connections to treat the entire Pack's safety like a game!"

Alex pointed at me too, his face a mask of disappointment and fury.

"Rowena, how can you still claim you're innocent? I already told you, the mate bond isn't a tool for you to go rummaging through my memories!"

"Those defense plans and secret passages, nobody outside my inner circle would have had a chance to know about them!"

Everyone around us heard them, and the angry stares converged on me.

"I can't believe she'd sell out her own people for personal gain!"

"Just because she's the Alpha heir's fated mate, she thinks she can do whatever she wants? Those Pack members who died, do their lives mean nothing?"

The man rushed at me again and wrapped his hands around my throat.

"Just because your status is higher, you think ordinary Pack members' lives don't matter? I'll make you pay for my dead brother!"

I could barely breathe, thrashing desperately under his grip.

Just then, guards finally arrived and pulled the man off me by force.

Alex looked at me coldly and gave his order to the guards.

"Take her in. Hand her over to the Elder Council for judgment."

My hands were pinned. The cold bite of silver restraints locked around my wrists.

That was when one of the guards spoke up. "What's going on here?"

Someone nearby answered furiously.

"This woman sold out the Pack's defense secrets and got border guards killed. They're taking her to stand trial!"

In the chaos, someone grabbed at my clothes.

The shawl across my chest fell away.

The noise died instantly.

Every pair of eyes dropped to my chest.

Alex froze.

Then someone in the crowd screamed.

"Oh my god, she... She doesn't have a heart!"