The Alpha’s Game

We watched the grand Luna Coronation Ceremony through the screen.

Although there was no wedding, Killian still granted Sofia the highest honor.

The Great Hall was illuminated by thousands of white candles—the highest standard of werewolf ritual.

Sofia wore a pure white gown. It was the [Saintess Robe] Alice had specifically redeemed with points, radiating an aura of purity and innocence.

She was betting everything on this final hand. She was betting that deep down, Killian craved redemption and light.

Killian sat on his throne, holding the object of our dreams—the Alpha’s "Token of the Blood Oath."

It was a black dagger forged from meteoric iron.

As long as Sofia got her hands on it, our whole family would be resurrected.

Sofia walked up the steps one by one and knelt at Killian's feet.

She looked up, her eyes clear, as if she were the only light in this dark world.

"Alpha," she whispered softly. "I pledge my eternal loyalty to you."

Killian looked down at her.

In that moment, I saw an unprecedented infatuation in his eyes.

The System notifications pulsed frantically:

[99.8%... 99.9%...]

Killian slowly reached out, offering the dagger to Sofia.

"Your eyes..." he murmured. "So clean."

"Like snow."

Sofia’s fingers were inches from the dagger.

Suddenly, everything changed.

Killian froze.

His nostrils flared slightly, as if he had caught a whiff of something revolting.

The look of infatuation instantly twisted into ferocious violence.

"No."

"This scent... it's too clean."

"So clean it makes me feel... filthy."

He exploded into motion, grabbing Sofia by her hair and hoisting her into the air.

*Rrrrip—!*

He brutally tore apart the priceless [Saintess Robe], exposing Sofia’s trembling body.

"You're acting."

Killian’s voice was no longer a magnetic baritone but a beastly roar.

"How could such a clean soul exist in this world? Unless you're faking it!"

"Just like *her* back then... You all want to use this holy facade to highlight my depravity, to manipulate my emotions!"

"You make me sick!"

Sofia screamed in terror: "No! Killian! I love you! I'm real..."

"Shut up! Liar!"

Killian dragged Sofia by her hair like a dead dog, striding toward the center of the hall.

There was a massive pool there.

It wasn't filled with water, but boiling Liquid Silver.

This was the cruelest punishment in the werewolf world, reserved for traitors.

"Since you love pretending to be so pure, go wash yourself clean."

"NO—!!!"

Accompanied by Sofia's heart-wrenching scream, Killian threw her into the silver pool without hesitation.

*Sizzle—*

It sounded like raw meat hitting deep-frying oil.

The silver liquid instantly encased Sofia, sending up plumes of white smoke.

We watched helplessly as Second Sister’s skin blackened and peeled away in an instant, revealing white bone.

She rolled and thrashed in the pool in agony, but the surrounding Berserkers just watched indifferently, some even letting out excited howls.

[Player Sofia: Deceased.]

[Redemption Progress: Reset to Zero.]

Killian stood by the pool, watching the skeleton sink to the bottom. The rage on his face faded, replaced by a sickly, morbid sorrow.

He turned around, looking at the remaining people in the hall—Alice and three other family members who had snuck in.

"You're all together, aren't you?"

Killian tilted his head, flashing a cruel smile.

"She smells just like you."

"You all reek of that same disgusting... hypocrisy."

He snapped his fingers.

"Kill them all. Leave no one alive."

A volley of arrows rained down.

Alice didn't even have time to cry for help before a silver arrow pierced her throat.

Followed by my cousins hiding in the crowd.

Blood stained the white ceremonial candles.

[Player Alice: Deceased.]

[Player Domine: Deceased.]

...

The Great Hall was strewn with corpses.

Killian stepped over the bodies of my kin, picked up the dagger, and gently wiped the blood off the blade.

He looked into the air—staring directly at us behind the screen—with a provocative glint in his eyes:

"Who's next?"

"Want to be my 'Savior'? Come on then."

"Send one, I'll kill one."

My Second Sister and Alice were dead.

The two smartest people in our family were gone.

The chat exploded into a frenzy. The "gods" showed no sympathy for our tragedy; instead, they were buzzing with excitement.

*"Hahahaha! Told you! Killian is unconquerable!"*

*"That was brilliant! That twist! 'You're too clean, you make me feel filthy'—that line is legendary!"*

*"This family is almost wiped out, right? Who's left? That old couple?"*

I looked at the few people remaining around me.

Mom, Dad, and my little sister who had just turned eighteen.

The atmosphere was suffocating.

"He's a demon... he's an utter demon..." Mom collapsed on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.

Dad's eyes were red as he stared deathly at the man on the screen, radiating pure malice.

The System's cold voice rang out again:

[Next Round Countdown: 10:00]

[Difficulty Upgrade: Killian has entered 'Berserk Alert' mode. Any approach with an ulterior motive will be treated as a hostile act.]

"It's useless..." I muttered in despair. "The romance route is a dead end. The rules route is a dead end. Even the humble servant route is a dead end."

"He has no weakness."

"No, he does."

Dad suddenly stood up.

He was an honest middle school teacher who had never lost his temper in his life. But right now, there was a fierce determination in his eyes.

"No matter how broken a child is, deep down, they crave their parents' love."

"Look at the chat... Killian's birth parents abused him. They tried to strangle him."

"What he lacks isn't a woman. It's a home."

Mom wiped her tears and helped Dad up. "Old man, are you thinking..."

"We'll go." Dad held Mom's hand tightly. "We're old bones anyway. If we die, we die. But we have to protect our children. We have to carve out a path for them to survive."

"We'll go as the old butler and the cook in the manor."

"We won't try to 'conquer' him. We'll just love him like our own son."

"We'll cook for him, mend his clothes, and brew him ginger soup when his legs ache in the rain."

"Hearts are made of flesh and blood. He has to feel something eventually."

I wanted to stop them, but looking at their gray hair, I opened my mouth and found no words.

Maybe... this was the only way?

The two elders spent their last remaining points to redeem the [Halo of Benevolence] and walked into the portal without looking back.

At first.

Everything seemed to go surprisingly well.

Killian didn't kill them.

Faced with this kind-looking old couple, he seemed almost at a loss.

Dad became the old butler, silently organizing his study every day without saying a word.

Mom became the cook, making him different home-cooked meals every day.

Once, Killian had a severe stomach ache late at night.

Mom brought hot porridge, and Dad held a blanket, guarding his bedside carefully, patting his back like he was soothing a child.

When Killian woke up and saw this, the scarlet in his eyes actually faded.

He looked at them blankly, like a lost child.

[Redemption Progress: Slowly rising to 30%... 40%...]

Six months passed.

There was even laughter in the manor.

We thought we were finally going to witness a miracle.

Until that stormy night.

Killian returned from outside, covered in blood. He seemed to have just been through a vicious battle, and his emotions were extremely unstable.

Mom's heart broke seeing him like that. She rushed up with a towel, wanting to wipe his face, muttering, "Oh my poor boy, look at you..."

Subconsciously, she tried to hug him.

The moment that hug was about to land.

Lightning tore through the night sky.

Killian's pupils constricted violently.

A nightmare from deep within his memory was awakened—years ago, on a stormy night just like this, his birth mother had pretended to hug him, only to stab a silver knife into his kidney.

"GET AWAY!!!"

Killian let out a mournful howl.

It was a stress response, a defensive instinct carved into his bones.

His claws lashed out uncontrollably.

*Squelch!*

Mom's head went flying, the expression of concern still frozen on her face.

Dad froze, then charged forward like a madman. "Old woman! If you dare touch her, I'll kill you!"

*Crack.*

Expressionless, Killian snapped Dad's neck.

Two elderly corpses lay on the expensive carpet, blood pooling around them.

Killian stood between the bodies, gasping for air.

His gaze shifted from confusion to shock, and finally to utter dead silence.

He looked at his hands and suddenly let out a laugh that made my blood run cold:

"Hahahaha..."

"Is this love?"

"Love is a weakness! Love is death!"

"I don't need this! No one gets close to me ever again!"

[Player Keal: Deceased.]

[Player Emily: Deceased.]

[Total Wipeout. Remaining Adult Survivors: 1.]

The hall was empty.

I was the only one left.

I looked at the bodies on the floor, then at the insane Alpha on the screen.

The chat was still scrolling with vicious mockery:

*"Tsk tsk, total party wipe."*

*"This last one will go soon. Probably suicide, right?"*

*"Killian has completely lost it. Anyone who goes in now is just feeding the meat grinder."*

I didn't cry.

My tears had run dry long ago.

I took the phones of all my dead relatives and pooled their remaining points into my account.

A total of 90 points.

I looked at the items in the System Store:

[Peerless Beauty]? Useless.

[Infinite Wealth]? Useless.

[Invincible Strength]? Also useless. As long as you are an "Outsider," as long as you are there to "conquer" him, you are his enemy.

As long as he sits on that throne, he will always be that paranoid, tyrannical monster.

To win...

There is only one way.

I took a deep breath, my eyes turning colder than a wolf's.

"System."

[Online. Player Halen, please choose your identity.]

I didn't look at the standard options.

I used all my points to redeem a forbidden item that no one had ever bought before—[Hourglass of Time Reversal].

And a rusty, worn-out dagger.

"I don't want to be his woman. I don't want to be his family. I don't want to be his servant."

I stared at the arrogant Killian on the screen and said, word by word:

"Send me back twenty years."

"I'm going back to his childhood, when he was just a Rogue stepped on by everyone."

"I'm going to replace him."

"I'm going to become the new Alpha."