I had become a wolf without a pack.

Or more accurately… a shrouded wolf without a pack.

Homeless.

Cast aside.

Dead to the world.

The thought should have terrified me more than it did.

Instead, it left me feeling strangely hollow.

I used to think life inside Black Blade Pack had been difficult, living beneath constant judgment, enduring whispers and pitying stares, surviving in a home where I was treated more like a servant than a daughter.

But this?

This felt like my entire life had been erased overnight.

Everything I had ever known was gone.

Still… deep down, I knew remaining in the pack would have killed me eventually. Even if Livia hadn’t declared me dead, Enzo would never have allowed me to survive after the rejection.

At least here in the mountains, I was free.

Though I still wasn’t entirely sure what freedom was supposed to mean.

“Try thinking of it differently,” Elena said warmly as she handed me a steaming cup of herbal tea. “You’ve been given another chance.”

We sat inside her small hut, surrounded by shelves of dried herbs and bundles of strange plants hanging from the ceiling. The air smelled earthy and calming, a sharp contrast to the chaos my life had become.

“You can become whoever you want now,” she continued.

I gave a weak smile before glancing out the window.

The narrow mountain path stretched downward into the distance, disappearing toward Black Blade territory.

Livia and Niccolo had left less than an hour ago.

And already the silence hurt.

There was no way of knowing when I would see them again.

I swallowed hard before turning back toward Elena.

“The truth is…” I stared down into my tea. “I’ve never really thought about who I wanted to become.”

Elena remained quiet.

“My worth was always tied to my wolf,” I admitted softly. “And since my wolf never awakened…”

I let the sentence trail off.

Elena snorted.

“That Alpha family of yours sounds insufferable.”

A quiet laugh escaped me.

“They are.”

“And Enzo?” she asked, arching a brow.

My smile vanished instantly.

“He’s worse.”

Elena leaned back in her chair with a look of disgust.

“There’s a special place in the underworld for men who weaponize the mate bond.” Her eyes darkened. “Rejecting you was cruel enough. Poisoning you beforehand?” She shook her head slowly. “The Goddess won’t ignore that.”

Something about the certainty in her voice made me smile faintly.

Elena noticed immediately.

“Oh?” she teased. “You’d rather get revenge yourself than leave it to fate?”

The smile faded from my lips.

“He’s still an Alpha,” I reminded her quietly. “Even if I hated him enough to try… I’d never stand a chance.”

“That’s nonsense.”

Elena waved dismissively.

“I told you about Alessandro. He can train you.”

I nearly laughed.

“And then what? I challenge Enzo to a duel?”

Her grin widened.

“If necessary.”

I shook my head.

“This probably sounds pathetic,” I admitted softly, “but Black Blade Pack was my entire world. The biggest dream I ever had was finding my mate, building a home, and having a family.”

Elena stared at me in disbelief.

“Did they keep you locked in a cage your whole life?”

“Close enough.”

The bitterness in my voice surprised even me.

“My father barely acknowledged me after I was declared a shrouded wolf. I cooked. Cleaned. Hunted. Took care of everything.” I swallowed thickly. “I wasn’t even allowed to eat at the same table as them anymore.”

The memory still hurt.

Not sharply.

Just… deeply.

Like an old wound that never fully healed.

“I spent my entire life trying to earn love from people who had already decided I was worthless.”

Silence filled the room for a moment.

Then Elena rose from her chair with a sudden grin.

“Well,” she announced, grabbing a thick fur coat hanging near the door, “that changes now.”

I blinked.

“What?”

She tossed the coat toward me.

“Put it on.”

Confused, I caught it against my chest.

“Are we going somewhere?”

“Oh, absolutely.” Her violet eyes gleamed with amusement. “It’s time you learned how much bigger the world really is.”

---

The mountain path was terrifying.

Jagged cliffs stretched beside us while sharp rocks lined the narrow trail beneath our feet. One wrong step would send someone tumbling straight into the abyss below.

Thankfully, daylight still covered the mountains.

Elena walked ahead of me with surprising ease, her long gray braid swaying behind her as she used a carved wooden walking stick more like an accessory than support.

I honestly couldn’t tell how old she was.

One moment she seemed ancient.

The next, impossibly lively.

Suddenly, she glanced back and pointed ahead.

“Alessandro’s estate is just over the hill.”

I frowned.

“Estate?”

She laughed.

“He may not have a pack anymore, but he’s still an Alpha.”

For some reason, I had imagined a hidden cabin deep in the woods.

Not an estate.

“You thought he lived in a cave?” Elena teased.

“Maybe not a cave,” I muttered. “But something less… grand.”

“Oh, it’s hidden,” she assured me. “Very hidden.”

We continued walking until Elena abruptly stopped in the middle of the rocky path.

I nearly walked into her.

“What’s wrong?”

Instead of answering, she raised both hands and began speaking in a language I didn’t recognize.

The air shifted instantly.

My breath caught.

The mountains around us blurred like rippling water before the entire landscape transformed before my eyes.

The narrow trail disappeared.

In its place stood a massive clearing with a broad road leading toward enormous iron gates.

I stared in shock.

“What… was that?”

Elena smirked proudly.

“A protection spell.” She winked. “The entrance only stays visible briefly, so keep moving.”

I hurried after her.

A tall warrior stood beside the gates, his dark eyes narrowing slightly as we approached.

“Good afternoon, Elena,” he greeted respectfully before looking toward me. “Who’s this?”

Elena smiled mischievously.

“A future warrior.”

The man blinked.

His gaze swept over me doubtfully.

Honestly, I couldn’t blame him.

I still looked fragile enough to collapse from a strong breeze.

After a long pause, he finally opened the gates.

“Alessandro is in his quarters.”

“Thank you, Vito.”

As we stepped inside, my jaw nearly dropped.

This wasn’t some hidden camp.

It was an entire village.

Stone houses lined the roads while people moved between shops and training grounds. Wolves sparred openly in the distance, their movements sharp and disciplined.

Life thrived here.

Real life.

“Elena…” I whispered.

She smiled softly at my reaction.

“Alitos,” she said. “A place where people come to breathe again.”

Something about those words settled deep inside me.

Maybe because, for the first time in a very long while…

I felt like I could breathe too.

---

Alessandro’s home stood at the center of the village, larger than every other building surrounding it.

A warrior escorted us through towering wooden doors before leading us toward an office near the back of the estate.

“Come in,” a deep voice called from inside.

Elena entered without hesitation.

I followed more cautiously.

The man behind the desk was enormous.

Broad shoulders strained against his dark shirt, and his light brown hair was tied neatly behind his head. A trimmed beard framed sharp features that somehow looked both noble and dangerous.

But it was his eyes that unsettled me most.

They studied me too carefully.

As though he could see far more than I wanted him to.

“This is Gianna,” Elena announced calmly. “The girl I mentioned.”

Alessandro leaned back slightly in his chair.

One brow lifted.

“Is that so?”

His gaze moved over me slowly.

“Omega?”

“A shrouded wolf,” Elena corrected. “Possibly the strongest I’ve ever encountered.”

I blinked in disbelief.

“Wait… what?”

Elena ignored me completely.

“She survived both wolfsbane poisoning and a mate rejection.”

Something flickered across Alessandro’s face.

Interest.

“Most wolves wouldn’t survive one of those,” he murmured.

“She survived both without an awakened wolf,” Elena continued. “And she still doesn’t understand what she truly is.”

A strange feeling spread through my chest.

Hope.

For the first time in my life, someone wasn’t looking at me with pity or disappointment.

They were looking at me like I mattered.

Like I possessed something valuable.

Alessandro folded his hands together thoughtfully.

“Have you heard of Alpha Matteo?”

I shook my head.

“I’m not surprised.” His expression darkened. “Alpha Fabio stayed neutral during the western war. He believed treaties would protect Black Blade Pack.”

A humorless laugh escaped him.

“He was wrong.”

The room suddenly felt colder.

“Matteo already controls most of the western territories and much of the north,” Alessandro continued. “The southern Alphas kneel before him now and call him Alpha King.”

A chill crawled down my spine.

“He won’t stop there,” Elena added quietly.

Alessandro nodded grimly.

“When he turns his attention east, he’ll send his most feared general first.”

Something twisted uneasily in my stomach.

“Who?”

“Alpha Stefano.”

The name struck something inside me instantly.

A flicker of black fur.

Red eyes glowing in the dark forest.

The massive wolf from the lake.

My pulse quickened.

Alessandro’s expression hardened.

“When Stefano arrives…” His voice lowered. “Entire packs will fall.”

Fear tightened inside my chest.

Not for Alpha Fabio.

Not even for Enzo.

But for Livia.

For innocent people who would be caught in the middle of a war they never chose.

“Can’t anyone stop him?” I asked quietly.

Silence stretched for a moment.

Then Alessandro looked directly at me.

“Maybe.”

Something shifted in the room.

A quiet tension.

A possibility.

I straightened slowly despite the lingering ache in my chest.

“What do you need me to do?”

A dark smile spread across Alessandro’s face.

“Join the resistance,” he said.

His eyes locked onto mine.

“And let me turn you into a weapon.”

Author’s Note

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