Chapter 1

Xavier Stone announced at the full moon banquet that he was going to hold a Marking ceremony, and the entire hall erupted in applause.

But I never expected that before the banquet even ended, I would see a projection screen on the wall outside the lounge.

On the screen was a massive Excel spreadsheet.

Behind the names of dozens of candidates, densely packed evaluation criteria were listed: bloodline, value to the Pack, performance in bed...

In the baseline column, my name was prominently written: Violet.

"People around you," he said, swirling his wine glass casually, "also need regular evaluation. Survival of the fittest."

So seven years of companionship meant I was just an investment that had lost its value in his eyes.

I didn't push the door open to confront him.

Instead, I took out my phone and sent a message to that person:

"Come pick me up."

Three seconds later, came the reply: "Everything settled? I'll be right there. The Marking ceremony is ready."

Violet's POV

Xavier had just publicly announced the Marking ceremony on stage, and everyone was applauding in celebration.

Even I thought he was finally going to give me an official status.

But I never expected that before the banquet even ended, I would overhear him at the lounge door discussing how to dump me.

The door wasn't fully closed. I had come to deliver something, but the moment I looked up, I saw the projection screen on the wall.

A massive Excel spreadsheet glowed on the screen.

"Alpha Xavier, is this really how you choose your mate?"

His deputy, beta Jason's voice came through, carrying a hint of mockery.

"You're practically running a talent show with scoring for the future Luna."

I stopped in my tracks and peered through the gap in the door.

A complex Excel spreadsheet was projected on the wall.

The spreadsheet listed dozens of names, each followed by densely packed evaluation criteria: bloodline background, value to the Pack, fertility assessment, and even a rating for bedroom performance.

Beta Jason held a cigarette, pointing at the data analysis on screen:

"Look at this candidate No.19, Amber, right? The alpha's daughter from Frostveil Pack. Obedient, sensible. Her score already completely exceeds your required threshold."

In the baseline column, my name was prominently displayed:

Violet.

Jason exhaled a smoke ring, his tone becoming somewhat hesitant:

"However, Violet has served the Pack for seven years. Everyone considers her the future Luna. If we replace her directly, won't it upset the pack members? Won't other packs think we lack contractual integrity, affecting Moonclaw's prestige?"

Silence fell in the room for two seconds.

Xavier sat in the main seat on the sofa, swirling half a glass of red wine, his face showing no trace of intoxication.

He looked up and scanned the data on screen, his eyes cold.

"The people around you need to be changed up too, to keep my interest."

He tilted his head back and took a sip of wine.

"Violet and I haven't held a Marking ceremony yet... This so-called mate thing is just her wishful thinking."

"That's too cruel to Violet."

In the lounge, beta Jason's voice carried some hesitation.

Xavier's tone was casual:

"She has no value to the pack anymore. I'll give her two more months. If she can recognize her position and leave on her own, that works too. Or... if she's willing to be my mistress, I can accommodate that."

Standing outside the door, the hangover soup I had specially made for Xavier spilled out.

I didn't feel the pain, only felt like a joke.

Seven years of companionship, all-in support—in his eyes, I was just an old thing that had lost its value.

Since I was already a burden in his eyes, I might as well actively sever all of this.

I didn't push the door open to confront him.

I walked to the trash can at the end of the hallway and dumped what I was holding into it.

Then I took out my phone and found that contact that had been forcibly added to my phone.

My finger hovered over the screen without any hesitation as I typed a message:

"I'm ready."

Message sent.

I reapplied my lipstick using the brass mirror in the hallway.

A few minutes later, Xavier came out of the lounge.

He casually put his arm around my waist, leading me toward the center of the banquet hall.

The spotlight fell on us. With a smile on his face, he whispered a warning in my ear:

"Smile. Don't make a scene."

When his fingers touched my waist, I stiffened physiologically.

Then I avoided his touch, pulling the corners of my mouth into a standard social smile.

The next morning, I was at Moonclaw Pack's training camp, training the young wolves.

Because these young wolves hadn't fully adapted to their bodies yet, they needed some gentle, playful training.

This was originally one of the responsibilities of the pack's Luna, and I had been handling it all these years.

Even though I had already decided to leave, until then, I still had to be responsible for these young wolves.

At that moment, gamma Silas came over to me and said:

"Violet."

Because Xavier and I had never held a Marking ceremony and I hadn't been officially recognized as alpha Xavier's mate.

So Silas only called me by my name.

"A young lady from Frostveil Pack specifically requested to see you."