She Chose Fire

Damien and Leo froze when Seraphina finished speaking.

Damien stared at her in shock. "W-what did you just say?"

Seraphina calmly repeated herself.

Then, before their expressions could grow any worse, she pretended not to understand and asked casually, "I heard you say that sentence in the Primal Tongue earlier. What does it mean?"

"Oh, you're asking what it means?" Damien visibly relaxed.

He stepped forward, took her hand, and smiled gently. "It means, 'My soul has chosen you.'

"If you wanna learn the Primal Tongue, I can teach you every day from now on."

Seraphina slowly pulled her hand back. "No need. That kind of ancient language is too complicated. I would never manage to learn it."

And even if she did, it wouldn't matter. In six days, she wouldn't remember anything at all.

Damien didn't push the issue. After kissing her forehead, he said, "By the way, I remember a flower sprite once gave you a Frostbloom, right? You're from the Sunfire bloodline, so you can't really use something that cold in nature anyway. Why not give it to Layla to help keep her alive?"

So that was why he came back.

She was just wondering why he would leave Layla at all.

Seraphina nodded. "Sure. Take it."

Her tone was calm, which seemed to make Damien uneasy. He spoke again, "Sera, why don't you come with us to visit her later? She's still your sister, after all."

Seraphina shook her head. "No. I have something else to do."

Damien frowned and asked unhappily, "What could possibly be more important than your sister's life?"

Seraphina found it bitterly ironic. To her mate and her parents, nothing had ever been more important than Layla.

But she didn't explain. She simply walked past the two of them.

Leaving her stone house behind, Seraphina went to Whisper Ridge.

Years ago, during the Wild Hunt, she had been gravely injured and collapsed by the banks of the Oblivion Stream. Bryan, Miriam, Damien, and even Leo hadn't come looking for her because they were all with Layla.

At the brink of death, a fiery spirit wolf had carried her to Whisper Ridge and shared its life essence with her, helping her survive and heal.

After she recovered, Seraphina wanted to bring the spirit wolf back to the Sunfire Pack's territory, but it refused to leave.

So she came to visit it every month instead.

Now, as she prepared to forget everything and go to Howlpeak to suppress wild spirits, the one she was most worried about was this spirit wolf she had named Blaze.

The moment she stepped onto Whisper Ridge, Blaze came bounding toward her, tail wagging, rubbing against her like an oversized puppy.

Seraphina rubbed its head, her heart heavy. "Blaze, in six days, I will leave this land. I won't be able to see you anymore. I know you don't wanna leave Whisper Ridge, but promise me you'll take good care of yourself, alright?"

Blaze understood her words. He sat down sadly, tail drooping, letting out soft whimpers from his throat.

Seraphina smiled helplessly. "What should we do, then? Should I take you to Howlpeak with me?

"The abyss aura of Howlpeak is too heavy. A pure spirit beast like you won't be comfortable there. You should stay here and live an easy life."

After playing with Blaze for a while, Seraphina decided to head back.

This time, Blaze followed after her and even crossed the barrier of Whisper Ridge with her.

"You wanna come home with me?"

Blaze caught the hem of her clothes in its mouth and nodded.

Seraphina thought the Sunfire Pack's territory was large enough to accommodate a spirit wolf, so she brought Blaze back with her.

She didn't expect to run into Damien and Leo the moment she returned. They were on a walk with Layla.

Blaze caught Seraphina's scent on Leo and instinctively grew fond of him. It trotted toward Leo happily, wanting to get close to him.

Leo didn't understand what was happening. He raised his hand and gathered a ball of energy, then blasted Blaze with Shadowfire.

Blaze had no chance to react. It was thrown through the air and slammed into the ground, letting out painful cries.

"Blaze!" Seraphina's heart clenched. She rushed over to check on it, then glared at Leo. "Why did you do that?"

Leo looked a little frightened, then he put his hands on his hips and complained righteously, "He almost ran into Aunt Layla. Mom, are you trying to hurt Aunt Layla on purpose?"

Damien also pulled Leo behind him, frowning at Seraphina.

"Seraphina, how can you speak to Leo like that over a stray beast? With you acting like this, no wonder he likes Layla more."

Seraphina's face went completely cold, her heart sinking even lower.

So her son liking Layla more was her fault.

And Damien probably thought the same thing, too.

For a moment, neither side spoke.

Then Layla broke the silence, looking sorry. "Phina, Leo only did it to protect me. If you're angry, take it out on me. Please don't be upset with Leo. He's still just a kid."

Before she finished, Leo immediately objected, "Aunt Layla, it's not your fault!"

A trace of mockery flashed through Seraphina's eyes. So, who was really his mother here?

Before she could speak, she suddenly noticed a line of pack members approaching, carrying white wreaths, silver ribbons, and ornaments carved with moon runes.

She froze and frowned. "Is the pack holding some kind of celebration?"

Damien and Leo's confident expressions instantly turned awkward.

After a moment, Damien finally said, "It's Layla's bonding ceremony."

Seraphina stared at him in disbelief. "Bonding ceremony? With whom?"

Leo blurted out proudly, "Aunt Layla and Dad are holding the ceremony."