~Aurora~

　　We were panting in our own forms. Him being a wolf, and I in my hybrid state. I supposed that my adrenaline rush was coming down post the kick that I got on my gut. I looked down, through the clothes that were torn and the gear split apart, I had no use of this gear on my body anymore. Vapors of healing were coming out of me.

　　"You're too strong," shifting back into his human form, Torin uttered.

　　"I'm supposed to be the alpha,

　　Daughter of Den Fangborn…" I muttered back, watching as my wounds were healing at the speed of light.

　　'Be careful, Aurora. He's trying to taunt you and ruin your state of mind,'

　　'I'm well aware of what he's trying to do, Maia. Please take care of me.'

　　'Always…'

　　I dropped the scabbards of my daggers and the leather belt to the ground. With the daggers finally pulled out, I shifted back to my human form as well.

　　"Don't you have any mercy on me…?" He was still distraught and panting, his back wasn't visible to me. But I could see that he was struggling to heal from the wounds that an alpha had inflicted on him.

　　"I have no mercy on betrayers, Torin. Especially someone who did the unthinkable. You're the worst kind of all…" He looked down at his feet, defeated.

　　He had realized that he wouldn't win against me. Hence, I had to use this opportunity to get the truth out of him…

　　"What are you going to try on me now, Torin? You know I'm not the naive person I was before what you did to me. And you have my heartfelt gratitude. I had like…a personality development after your betrayal. I couldn't trust anyone. Not even my own mate!"

　　"Mate? You've found yourself a mate amidst all this?"I could tell that he was genuinely confused,

　　"I did, Torin. Fate has always been a game, isn't it? And our meeting was all but a coincidence. It was a planned fate by the Moon Goddess."

　　"You're…fated to Emeric…" his eyes were wide, pupils dilated. I took so much pride in the defeat of his faith as Torin admitted defeat completely. He fell to the ground, he couldn't believe what had happened.

　　"That's right…I'm fated to Prince Emeric. The man you've stolen his kingdom from."

　　"No…I didn't steal his kingdom. I only helped Leif get what he wanted after he'd helped me with what I had wanted. He promised me grandly, and I was flowing with his desires…"

　　"Explain yourself better." I demanded, walking closer to him. He did not flinch, he did not move another muscle. He was only shocked and terrified and had defeated himself after realizing he shouldn't have fought me all by himself. If…maybe…he was with Leif at the moment, he would've been saved. But at the same time, Emeric and Odin would have been with me as well and his defeat would be propelled anyway.

　　"Last year…your parents had become so successful that Leif had nothing but jealousy towards your pack. Our pack. He got in contact with me, slowly taking me towards the dark end where I was left there all by myself. I started shifting my loyalty towards him, from the alpha who was giving me everything that I wanted. Alpha Den was one of his kind…and you remind me so much of him…" He began talking. I simply stood in front of him, as if I was his God.

　　"One fateful day, Leif finally manipulated me enough to poison your parents and get rid of them completely. They were struggling. They were way too intoxicated to even save themselves. The driver told me that he saw Den hugging your mother to his chest as she sobbed out blood. From her eyes and from her mouth, her nose was bleeding too. But Den was still protecting her to the end of his life. That was the kind of man your father was, Aurora."

　　Hearing that, I knew I had lost a piece of my imagination as I couldn't help but recreate that entire scene in my head. The driver jumped out of the speeding car, saving himself from misery. He left behind his pack's alpha and Luna and watched as the car exploded into the bushes…

　　I couldn't imagine the amount of shame and regret that man had in him. Maybe that was why he took his own life after a few days of the incident. While I was away to train myself for the Trials in the Kingdom.

　　I didn't know about the driver's passing…until after everything ended.

　　But it all made sense at that moment.

　　I couldn't help the drop of tear from rolling down my eyes. It felt like shit to be betrayed to, but knowing how your parents died…it hurts like no other pain in the world.

　　Yet…I stood my ground. I looked down at Torin and saw that he wanted to ask one last question to me,

　　"Why have you revealed to me about your scandalous mate? Alexia was right, wasn't she?" Tears and fear were dancing in his eyes as well,

　　"I let you onto that fact…Because you will be dying right here, right now. You wouldn't tell another soul about it, because I'll be taking away your life as compensation for your sins.

　　I'm being very generous, Torin. I wouldn't given you worse punishments, but I can't afford to even look at you without feeling hatred and disgust in my heart."

　　I prepared my blades, twisting them in my hands to behead him as swiftly as I could. If it was humanely possible, too.

　　"Don't I have another chance to live, Aurora…?"

　　"Even if I allowed you to live, the world would keep haunting you, trying to kill you. I'm giving you freedom.

　　Go ahead and tell my parents how sorry you are, not to me…"

　　And then…I stroked the blades from both ways and beheaded him. His head flew in the air at the impact, there was no expression on his face. Getting myself down from the high…I approached his head that was lying there against the stairs. I brought it back to his body, which was prideful and still stationed in the same position. He was kneeling down. I placed his head in his lap, closing his dead eyelids.

　　It was the closure that we both needed.

　　Rest in peace, Torin…