[Elara''s POV]
A sudden, sharp laugh escaped my lips.
Kaelen. Just a few short weeks ago, he had witnessed his mother's vicious lies firsthand. Yet here he was, without a moment's hesitation, choosing to believe her again.
It was brutally clear. He had never considered me family.
Not then, and not now.
Kaelen's brow furrowed, my laughter grating on his nerves. "What's so funny?"
"Ending my bond with you," I said, my voice clear and steady, "is the best decision I have ever made."
His face tightened. He knew this day was coming, but hearing the words from my own lips, spoken with such finality, was a physical blow. A sharp, stinging pain lanced through him, a warning of a loss he was only just beginning to comprehend.
Ignoring the feeling, he resorted to a threat. "If you don't apologize, don't expect to see a single one of those one hundred and fifty-three Origin Crystals."
Liana trembled with rage beside me. "Kaelen, have you no honor? Those crystals were her parents'—"
"Liana." My voice was quiet, but it cut her off instantly. "Let me handle this." I calmly raised my communication crystal and played the video I had started recording the moment I entered the room.
The footage was undeniable: Adelina lunging at me, my swift interception, and her subsequent, theatrical collapse.
"You believe your mother, Kaelen?" I asked, my voice dripping with sarcasm. "Do you still believe her now?"
The air was stolen from his lungs. A hot flush of shame crept up his neck. He turned to his mother and sister, his voice tight with disbelief. "When I bailed you out, you promised me this wouldn't happen again."
Adelina and Giselle flinched, refusing to meet his eyes.
Seraphina immediately stepped in, her voice a smooth balm. "They were just upset that Elara refused to sign the forgiveness letter. After all, you were once family. There's no need to be so cruel." She looked at me, her expression a mask of gentle reproof. "If I were in your position, I would never stoop to such vindictive tactics."
Giselle looked at Seraphina with tearful gratitude. "Sister Seraphina, you're so kind, forgiving me for what I said. As soon as my brother is free of her, I'll make sure he marries you right away!"
I watched the two of them, now as thick as thieves, and had to suppress another laugh. They seemed to have forgotten how, just a few days ago at the Enforcer's station, they had been at each other's throats like rabid dogs, each trying to pin the blame on the other.
The assembly began. The hall was filled with reporters, the elders of the Blackwood Pack, and representatives from various merchant guilds.
Kaelen and I sat at the center of the stage, like two criminals awaiting a public execution.
He cleared his throat, his voice amplified by the magical device before him. "I have convened this assembly to make an announcement. Miss Elara Silvermoon and I have decided to formally dissolve our mate bond."
A wave of murmurs swept through the crowd.
Kaelen continued, his voice ringing with false authority. "The proprietary rights to the Moonshadow Defense System, which Miss Silvermoon helped to refine during our union, will, upon the dissolution of our bond, become the sole property of the Blackwood Pack for continued development and operation."
The murmurs in the hall intensified.
"Furthermore, I will provide Miss Silvermoon with a financial settlement." He paused for dramatic effect. "This settlement will not be drawn from Pack funds. I will be compensating her with a portion of my personal mining rights revenue."
"What?" I froze, my blood turning to ice.
His personal mines were a new venture. Their revenue rights were currently under a trade-lock mandated by the Elder Council. They couldn't be sold or liquidated. Transferring them was a complex process that required the approval of the other elders. Most importantly, an asset under a trade-lock could not be legally transferred as part of a mate-bond dissolution.
In other words, with a few hollow promises, he intended to erase the debt of one hundred and fifty-three Origin Crystals.
He was planning to pay me nothing.
"That's not what we agreed upon!" I shot to my feet, my eyes blazing.
Kaelen's face twisted into an expression of deep, pained sincerity. "Yes, I agreed to one hundred and fifty-three Origin Crystals. But I will not use the Pack's funds to pay for our failed mating. My personal assets are fully invested in the Pack's operations. This is a critical time for our growth. Are you truly willing to jeopardize the future of this Pack for your own selfish gain?"
In a single stroke, he painted himself as a selfless leader and me as a greedy, vindictive shrew.
Instantly, the gazes of the Pack elders turned cold with disapproval.
Adelina seized the moment, her voice a shrill accusation. "My son dedicates his life to this Pack, and all you can think about is money! For three years, you did nothing but leech off him, and now you show your true colors!"
Giselle joined in, her voice ringing with self-righteous fury. "Elara, are you going to sacrifice the entire Pack for your own greed? This Pack was built by my brother and his loyal followers! It's not your personal vault!"
With that, they had placed themselves on the moral high ground, and I was the villain. Even the elders who knew how much I had contributed to the Pack's success remained silent, their own interests now at stake.
I stared at the three of them, at their disgusting performance. Kaelen said nothing.
Personal vault? Who, exactly, had been treating the Pack's treasury as their own?
"Ha! This is rich!" A clear, arrogant voice cut through the hall from the entrance. "To seize your mate's life's work in a rejection, and then try to cast her out with nothing? That's more bloodthirsty than a vampire!"
As the words echoed, Ethan Northwind strode into the hall.
Every head turned. The reporters who recognized him lit up with excitement. The Little Tyrant of the North was here. And from the look of it, he was here for Elara.
Kaelen's expression soured. He stood, his voice hard. "Lord Ethan, your words are uncalled for. The defense system was refined during our mating. It is considered a shared asset. For it to belong to the Pack is perfectly legal."
"Just because it was refined during a mating doesn't make it a shared asset," Ethan sneered, closing the distance to the stage. "The core technology was developed by Elara alone. What does it have to do with you?"
"How do you know my brother had nothing to do with it?" Giselle shouted. "He's the most gifted Alpha in the eastern forests! Elara is nothing! She probably just stole his research to finish her little project!"
Her words only made those in the know want to laugh.
"Your brother's specialty is strategic command, is it not?" Ethan's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Is your brother a master of ancient runes? An expert in the layout of energy arrays? How, exactly, did he develop the core technology for the Moonshadow Defense System?"
Giselle's face fell. "Well… what about her? How could she have developed it?"
Liana shot to her feet, her voice a roar of pure fury. "Because our Elara is the champion of the Wolf Wisdom Trials! Is that qualification enough for you? If your brother was half as capable as he claims, he wouldn't be trying to steal her work and cheat her out of a measly one hundred and fifty-three Origin Crystals!"