Chapter 5: Chapter 5: I Married a Werewolf?

Lila’s POV

After we returned from the Rose Garden, Jasper didn’t mention the ring again, nor did he bring up Caleb’s appearance. He just silently escorted me back to the villa nestled in the heart of the forest—Moon Hidden Villa.

I later learned its name from the butler. It carried an ancient and mysterious air, much like Jasper himself. The entire structure seemed to have sprung from moonlight and moss. Its stone walls were covered in ivy, the window lattices carved with intricate vine totems. Even the air felt heavier and damper here, as if time itself had slowed its pace.

Night fell, and the chirping of unknown insects filled the forest, occasionally punctuated by a few long, drawn-out wolf howls. At first, I thought it was the wind moaning through the valley, until the sound came again—deep, powerfully piercing, and carrying a primal rhythm that made my chest tingle.

I thought I was imagining it until I asked the butler. In a tone of near reverence, he told me, “Ma’am, these woods are the forbidden grounds of the Hale family. The wolf pack within… they listen only to the Young Clan Leader’s command.”

“Young Clan Leader?” I repeated the unfamiliar title, a cool, metallic taste on my tongue.

The butler nodded slightly, his eyes flickering as if afraid of overstepping and violating some taboo. “Yes. Sir is not only the head of the Hale Group but also the Young Clan Leader of our Hale Clan. However, it would be better if he told you these things himself.”

I stood frozen, a chill creeping into my heart. ’The Hale Clan? Young Clan Leader? A wolf pack?’ The words swirled together, like a rusty yet exceptionally sharp key trying to pry open a door I never knew existed—a door behind which, perhaps, lay a world beyond my comprehension.

I returned to my room and stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the pitch-black forest. Moonlight draped over the treetops like a silver veil, and mist swirled through the woods. I could faintly make out a few pairs of eerie green eyes gleaming in the depths, vanishing as quickly as they appeared. They were quiet and alert, like silent sentinels. They were guarding, and they were watching.

I suddenly realized I might not have married an ordinary, wealthy man, but… something not human.

The thought sent a chill through me, and a shiver ran down my spine. But strangely, no real fear rose in my heart. Instead, there was an uncanny sense of familiarity, as if this truth had long been lurking in the depths of my consciousness, just waiting for the right moment to surface.

The look in Jasper’s eyes last night when he lost control—that wild, primal power that seemed to come from a bygone era—now had a logical explanation. He wasn’t drunk… he was driven by some instinct. And I was the prey caught by that instinct.

’He was a—a Werewolf!? Even… the Wolf King!’

’And I, an ordinary human, had become the contract wife of the Wolf King.’

I looked down at the “Tear of the Moon God” on my ring finger. The sapphire glowed faintly in the moonlight, as if it were alive, pulsing softly with my breath. Zoe had said it would bring eternal love, but there wasn’t even a shadow of love between Jasper and me yet. Although… the passion of that one night felt a lot like love… even hotter and more primal than my short-lived romance with Caleb.

That night, I had a dream.

In the dream, there was no Moon Hidden Villa, no Rose Garden. There was only a boundless primeval forest. Ancient trees towered into the sky, their branches blocking most of the moonlight, casting dappled, shifting silver light onto the ground.

I was walking barefoot on soft moss, not knowing where I was going, but instinctively heading deeper into the forest. My heart beat fast, not from fear, but from a throbbing sensation of being summoned, as if something in my blood was resonating. With every step, I could clearly feel a vibration from deep within the earth, matching the rhythm of my own heart—THUMP, THUMP, THUMP—heavy and steady.

Suddenly, the bushes ahead rustled. A pair of eerie green eyes lit up, like two clusters of burning will-o’-the-wisps, locking onto me. The gaze was sharp and focused, scrutinizing, and filled with an unmistakable possessiveness. I recognized those eyes—they were Jasper’s.

But he wasn’t in his human form.

A colossal wolf with long, silver-gray fur slowly emerged from the shadows. Its shoulders were nearly level with my eyes, and muscles rippled like liquid beneath its coat, brimming with explosive power. The moonlight outlined its sleek spine, and every strand of fur seemed steeped in silver light. It didn’t let out a threatening growl, merely watched me quietly. Deep within those green eyes swirled complex, human emotions: restraint, struggle, and a hint of… almost reverent tenderness.

I wanted to run, but my feet felt rooted to the spot. My body, more honest than my mind, actually reached a hand out toward it.

The great wolf lowered its head slightly, its warm breath puffing against my palm with a reassuring heat, like the first white puff of air on a winter day. It gently licked my fingertips with its rough tongue. The strange sensation sent a shiver through my entire body—not of pain, but of a tingling current that shot from my fingertips straight up my spine. Then, it nudged my hand with its nose, guiding me to stroke the thick mane on the side of its neck.

Where I touched, I felt scorching body heat and a strong, powerful pulse. Its life force was so vigorous it nearly burned my skin. I could feel the blood rushing beneath its fur and hear the steady, drum-like beat of its heart.

Just as I was lost in this strange intimacy, the great wolf suddenly threw its head back and let out a long, desolate howl at the full moon. The sound pierced through the sea of trees, making the leaves tremble and causing a chord deep within my soul to hum in response.

The great wolf lowered its head again, its gaze now falling on the side of my neck. I could feel its hot breath ghosting over my skin, raising a fine shiver. Its eyes grew deep and dangerous, its fangs glinting coldly in the moonlight, their tips seeming to pierce the very air.

Just as its sharp canines were about to touch my vulnerable skin, a powerful current of mixed fear and anticipation shot through me. I jolted awake!

A cold sweat soaked my pajamas. My heart was pounding in my chest, threatening to burst out. Outside, real wolf howls were rising and falling, overlapping perfectly with the one from my dream, as if reality and the dreamscape were merging in that moment.

I subconsciously raised a hand to my neck—the skin was smooth, with no wound. But the veins beneath were throbbing, and a phantom pain lingered from the touch of fangs. There was also… a hollow, unfulfilled longing, as if my body remembered something it was supposed to have.

I curled up in the corner of the bed, hugging my knees, trying to calm the absurd and unnerving palpitations. The gaze of the great wolf from my dream, that stare blending wildness and tenderness, replayed endlessly in my mind. ’What… is this dream trying to tell me?’

Just then—

There were two extremely faint knocks on my door.

TAP, TAP.

The sound was soft, but it struck my heart like a heavy hammer.

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