Chapter 13: ¹³: golden retriever

"Thank you," I said to the woman who led me to my assigned room in the Starlight Pack’s packhouse. The pack that everyone called the Land of Dreams.

I stepped inside and looked around, taking in my new surroundings. The room was simple but cosy. A neatly made bed stood in the centre, facing a large window that allowed the morning sunlight to stream inside. Beside it was a sturdy study desk, a bookshelf, and a decent-sized wardrobe.

It wasn’t luxurious.

But it was more than enough for a scholarship student like me.

Given my current circumstances, a scholarship had been my only chance of entering Dreven Academy. That was why I had pushed myself so relentlessly during the entrance examination.

Thankfully, I had earned the Dravera.

Along with the honour came a full scholarship that covered all of my tuition and living expenses.

I sat on the edge of the bed feeling the soft bedding beneath me trying to calm myself with its softness. My suitcases had already been placed beside it by the staff after I entrusted them with my luggage before the ceremony as I did not have the time to come to my room at that time.

Slowly, I lay back and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling of my room that would become my home for the next several years and almost immediately...

My thoughts drifted back to the past.

It had been six months since Harry betrayed me.

Six months... And I still couldn’t feel Anna. "I’m sorry, Anna." My fingers gently rested over my abdomen. "I’m sorry you have to suffer because of my foolishness."

The wounds left by Harry’s dagger still refused to heal. Despite receiving the finest medicines one could find, those two wounds remained open, exactly as they had been on the first day. Still painful, still raw, a constant reminder of the betrayal I had endured.

At first, I had believed that the dagger which Harry had used was just that -an ordinary dagger.

I was an Alpha Blood Wolf.

Ordinary wounds should have healed within days without any medicine, but that was not it.

That treacherous bastard had the dagger infused with some wicked magic. A cruel curse that had taken everything from me. Not only did it prevent my wounds from healing...

It had also severed my connection with Anna. I could no longer hear her voice.

No longer transform.No longer let her run freely beneath the moonlight. I even missed her endless complaints about how I kept her trapped because of Dad’s strict rules against me showing my wolf in public.

Closing my eyes, I clenched my fists.

"I swear Anna ..."

"I’ll make everyone responsible kneel before us."

"I’ll find a way to break this curse to find the cure for this wound and bring you out of the restraint of this magic."

"And when I do..."

"I’ll let you run as much as you want."

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to sit up. Dwelling on the past wouldn’t change anything. If I truly wanted revenge...

Then I had to keep moving forward.

I opened my luggage and began arranging my belongings neatly inside the wardrobe.

Books, clothes, stationery. Little by little, the unfamiliar room began to feel like my own.

Once everything was in place, I walked into the bathroom. It was time to clean my wounds. Carefully, I peeled away the specially made skin-colored coverings that concealed the injuries.

"Ah..."

A sharp hiss escaped my lips as I placed the covers into antiseptic solution before beginning to clean both of my stitched wounds.

" Harry you Bastard..." I muttered under my breath as the antiseptic burned against the open flesh. Without the stitches, the wounds would have looked no different from the day Harry stabbed me.

I couldn’t even imagine what kind of cursed weapon he had used.

After applying the paste mother Elena had made for me, I left the wounds without any coverings.

Standing before the bathroom mirror, I looked at the hideous-looking wound on my abdomen in my reflection.

"Good luck for tomorrow Athena Roosevelt..."

A small smile appeared on my lips.

"No..."

I corrected myself.

"Good luck, Athena Moonvel."

Athena Roosevelt had died six months ago.

From today onward...

Only Athena Moonvel existed.

The next morning—

"Good morning," I said to myself as soon as I got up in the morning and without wasting a second I headed into the bathroom.

Today was my first official day at Dreven Academy.

After getting dressed in my academy uniform and styling my hair, I left my room.

The academy was pretty close to the pack house only a ten- fifteen minute walk. As I walked through the streets of Starlight Pack, I couldn’t help noticing how prosperous everything looked. The roads were spotless. The buildings stood tall and elegant.

Everywhere I looked, people wore expressions of confidence and pride.

It was no wonder Starlight Empire stood far above the packs that weren’t under its rule.

Soon, Dreven Academy came into view.

Many students had already arrived. As I entered the campus, several of them looked in my direction. Some whispered to one another while pointing discreetly. They were probably first-year students like me.

I ignored the curious gazes and headed toward my assigned classroom.

Room Ten.

First Floor.

The classroom was still only half full when I entered. I chose a seat in the second row before placing my books neatly on the desk.

Just as I finished arranging them...

Someone knocked lightly on my desk.

I looked up.

A cheerful girl stood beside me with a bright smile.

"Hi!" she greeted enthusiastically. "Can I sit here?"

"Of course," I said getting back to what I was doing while she sat down immediately.

"I’m Rose." She extended her hand looking at me like a golden retriever. "What’s your name?"

I shook it politely. "Nice to meet you, Rose. I’m Athena."

"Actually I already know your name since yesterday but still, formalities you know," Rose said smiling and I just nodded back.

She looked like she wanted to continue chatting.

But before she could say another word...

Gasps spread throughout the classroom.

Both of us instinctively turned toward the door to see what had happened.

And right there a familiar figure had just entered. The same person I had seen yesterday. The student who had also qualified for the Dravera...

Yet lost it because my score had been higher.

Louis Dreven.