---- mighty Alpha crumble. "No! No, it's not real!" His nails gouged into his palms, drawing blood. From that moment on, he lost himself to the hunt. He searched everywhere- Abandoned churches under moonlight, underground clubs glowing with neon excess, refuge shelters on the outskirts of town. Every place where I could've hidden, he tore apart with desperation. But I had vanished from the world. Rain poured as he stormed a hidden casino, soaked to the bone. He grabbed Kevin by the collar, his voice barely human. "Tell me where she is! Where's Joy?!" Kevin, gaunt and wasted, let out a shrill laugh. " Great Alpha, my sister's nothing but ash now. You ---- could rip this continent in half and still-" His words cut short by a brutal punch that shattered his jaw. From then on, the Alpha who once ruled the capital became little more than a hollow shell. Until his private jet went down over the ocean. When the alert ''Lycan Chairman Killed in Plane Crash" popped up on my phone screen, I was sitting at an open-air café, sipping pour-over coffee. The man who once haunted my every breath now stirred only the faintest ripple in my heart. Thad long since traded my face on the black market. He would never find me. And I would never set foot in that world of lies again. ---- The sun spilled across the street. People bustled past in every direction. And for the first time, I didn't need to hide. This time, I would savor every second of my new life.