The scent of blood clung to the night air.
My blood.
I staggered across the cold stone floor, my once proud Luna's robes torn and soaked crimson. Around me, the grand hall — the hall where I was crowned queen beside the Alpha King — now echoed with laughter. His laughter.
The man I had sworn to hate.
The man fate had bound me to.
My enemy… my husband.
"Did you truly think," his voice was like a blade against my skin, "that you could ever defy me, little mate?"
My chest burned where his claws had ripped through me. I looked up at him — tall, cruel, crowned by the moonlight. Once, I had dreamed of destroying him. Instead, he destroyed me.
Tears stung my eyes as I whispered, "Moon Goddess… if you have even a shred of mercy… let me live again. Let me rewrite this cursed bond."
The world blurred. Darkness closed in. My last sight was his cold, victorious smile.
And then — silence.
…Until the blinding light of dawn seared my eyes open.
I gasped. My body was whole. The scent of roses, not blood, filled the air. My room was smaller, simpler… familiar. I knew this place.
Because I had lived here years ago.
Before my marriage.
Before the Alpha King.
Before my death.
I touched my chest — no wound, no scar. My hands trembled.
"I… I've been reborn?"
A second chance.
But fate is cruel.
And the man I hated most… would still be my destined mate.