Chapter 4

• That night, I tossed and turned in a nightmare, my father's icy gaze and Laila and Evelyn's smug smiles intertwining repeatedly.
• But what finally jolted me awake was not these terrifying images, but the bone-chilling cold that seeped in when someone suddenly pulled back the covers.
• "It's five o'clock," the woman I had seen in Kade's office yesterday stood by my bed, "Time to get up and exercise."
• I squinted at the clock on the wall, the hands indeed pointing to five, but outside the window was still shrouded in a gray mist.
• "I feel like I just fell asleep..." I mumbled, instinctively trying to argue.
• "The enemies on the battlefield won't care how long you've slept," she yanked the covers off and pulled me up, "I'm Katherine, and I'll be training you from today."
• "When the enemy attacks, are you going to negotiate with them to let you sleep for eight hours?"
• Dragging me down to the basement, she pushed open a heavy metal door. The sight before me instantly sobered me up, it was a training ground rivaling that of a special forces unit. Punching bags, boxing rings, tactical shooting ranges, climbing walls... the air was filled with the smell of leather, steel, and sweat.
• "Now that the stone has recognized you," Katherine snapped open a notebook, "from today you are a warrior of Kade. But before I let you carry out any missions, I need to make sure you're not useless."
• Katherine's sharp gaze scanned my body, "Even if you are a woman recognized by the stone, if you're just a weakling, I will never agree to let you go on that mission and ruin our plan."
• "Wait, what mission? I don't—"
• Before I could finish my sentence, she had already pushed me onto a military-grade treadmill. With a 'beep' sound, the conveyor belt suddenly accelerated to a dizzying speed, and my vision instantly spun.
• "Thirty minutes, no stopping," Katherine raised a stopwatch, "Let me see how long you can last."
• Three hours later, I practically crawled out of the basement, my muscles trembling as if I had been run over by a car. And Katherine followed behind me, calmly recording data in her notebook.
• "Stronger than expected," she snapped the notebook shut, her tone flat, "Endurance is decent, but your strength is pitiful. You must retest in wolf form."
• Wolf form? My heart suddenly raced. My father's lies echoed in my mind, the lie about why I didn't have a wolf.
• I dug my nails deep into my palm, forcing myself to stay calm. No flaws could be shown until I confirmed my mother's safety.
• "I'm afraid... it's not very convenient," I controlled the trembling in my voice, "I was scared yesterday. I only got my own wolf last year, and I still can't control my transformation smoothly."
• She frowned, "Can such a small thing affect you? How could the curse stone choose such a weak person like you?"
• "I just matured later!" I interrupted her, "Our ancestors only awakened their wolf spirit at eighteen and could go to battle at nineteen."
• "That's all old history. Do you know why it's called the new century now? The internet has made knowledge boundless, supplements make cubs as strong as bulls, geniuses awakening at twelve are running around, and those without a wolf spirit at fourteen or fifteen are called useless. And you?" She suddenly leaned in close to my nose, "Even your sweat smells faintly like a human."
• "In the Nocturne tribe, tradition is meant to be broken. The average level of the last century?" She stood up, looking down at me, "Only fit to be a stepping stone."
• She turned and walked to the shelf, throwing a towel at me, "Since you're so weak, double your training when you come back tonight."
• The towel covered my head, and the moment of silence felt like a cruel period to this conversation.
• I raised my head abruptly, my voice hoarse, "Wait—what do you mean by 'when you come back tonight?' Where am I going?"
• "Of course, to school." Katherine squinted, "A seventeen-year-old cub, we don't need illiterate warriors without even a high school diploma."
• The off-road vehicle rolled over the gravel road, stopping in front of a Gothic building. Katherine pulled out a card from the glove compartment and threw it on my lap.
• I picked up the cold student ID, with my photo on it, but under the name 'Rey Engel,' not my father's prestigious 'Russell.'
• "The surname Russell is too hated in Nocturne." Katherine explained impatiently, "But your mother... she still has some good reputation here."
• What does that mean? But isn't it my mother who's fighting against them?
• I wanted to ask more, but Katherine became impatient, "Enough, stop dragging your feet, I'm still busy."
• The car door suddenly swung open, before I could react, she viciously kicked me in the back with her military boots, throwing me off the car. As I regained my balance, all I heard was the engine roaring away.
• I picked up my student ID from the ground.
• This crazy woman. Dragging me to the training ground at five in the morning to torture me, and now she's just dumped me at the school gate like trash.
• What's even weirder is that Kade, who demanded my loyalty, hasn't shown his face from dawn till now.