Alpha's Regret: The Reclaim Of The Substitute Luna

Aurora’s POV

“I just sent you a mate relationship termination agreement. Alpha Ferris and I signed it during our sacred ceremony three years ago. Could you check if there are any issues?”

I stood by the floor to ceiling window, my fingers unconsciously tracing the edge of my phone.

“Luna, I’ve reviewed the agreement. Everything looks fine.”

My lawyer’s professional voice came through the speaker.

“There’s one month left before the three year term expires. Once it’s up, the termination agreement will automatically take effect. You’ll be free to leave the Silver Moon Pack and start fresh.”

“Thank you.”

I hung up and lifted my gaze to our wedding photo on the wall.

In the picture, I wore a pristine white gown and the Luna ring set with the most precious blue moonstone, smiling so wide my eyes curved like crescent moons.

Beside me stood Alpha Ferris in his tailored suit, devastatingly handsome, yet not even a hint of a smile graced his features.

Love versus indifference. Crystal clear.

“That day’s finally coming. You must be thrilled,” I whispered to myself, my fingertip gently tracing the cold, sharp lines of the man’s face in the photo.

The sound of keys jingling at the front door made me quickly pull my hand back and turn around.

“I’m home.”

I took Ferris’s suit jacket as he shrugged it off, then squatted down to help him into his slippers.

My movements flowed with practiced precision, like I’d rehearsed this routine a thousand times.

Ferris loosened his tie, his expression remaining distant.

“Next month’s Moonlight Gala for the Silver Moon Pack. I need you there as Luna.”

Thinking about the divorce agreement set to activate in one month, my hands paused while folding his jacket.

I shook my head. “I can’t make it.”

“Why not?” Ferris frowned.

I opened my mouth to explain, but something suddenly clicked in his mind. His eyes turned glacial.

“Is this because I’ve been spending time with Ashley? Are you jealous?”

“I told you on our wedding day. I’m in love with someone else. You said you wouldn’t interfere.”

My heart clenched violently, like someone had torn it wide open.

Right. My mate, my Alpha, had told me on our wedding night that he already had a she wolf he truly loved. He’d only married me to shut up the pack elders.

Not only that, but on our wedding night, he’d forced me to sign an agreement to divorce after three years.

Looking at Ferris’s irritated expression, I managed a weak smile.

He thought I was jealous, throwing a tantrum.

“I’m leaving the Silver Moon Pack,” I said calmly. “That is already decided, so I won’t be able to attend the banquet.”

There were only thirty days left until we said goodbye.

He must be ecstatic. Soon, he’d be free to marry his true love.

With a bitter smile tugging at my lips, I reminded him, “Ferris, do you remember the agreement we signed three years ago?”

Three years ago, the Silver Moon Pack and Stardust Pack announced their upcoming alliance through marriage.

They were two of the wealthiest and most powerful packs in the werewolf world. With their heirs becoming mates, both packs would reach unprecedented heights of strength and prestige.

I’d harbored a secret crush on Ferris since childhood. Learning I’d become his Luna had sent me over the moon.

But just as the sacred ceremony ended, while I was still immersed in the nervous anticipation of my wedding night, Ferris handed me a contract.

I was stunned.

“I’m in love with someone else. Her name is Ashley Carter. Since she’s an Omega, my father refuses to let her become my Luna.”

His tone was cold, his words brutally direct.

“I need three years to become Silver Moon’s true Alpha. After that, no one will dare oppose our union.”

“For these three years, we’ll just play the role of husband and wife. Then we divorce.”

That night, I signed as he wished, then cried in the bathroom until dawn.

Less than three months after our wedding, Ashley vanished without a trace after a fight with Ferris.

Ferris went mad searching for her. He pulled every string, used every connection, but found nothing.

During that period, he stayed out all night, coming home reeking of alcohol, his eyes terrifyingly dark.

Until one night, he stumbled home completely wasted and pinned me to the bed.

His kiss crashed down on me, heavy with alcohol, as he whispered, “Ashley… why did you leave? Why are you with someone else? Don’t you trust me?”

My entire body went rigid. My heart felt like it was being crushed in someone’s fist, the pain nearly suffocating.

So he’d found her.

But Ashley was with someone else now.

That night was my first time, yet Ferris held me while calling another woman’s name until sunrise.

The next morning, Ferris saw the blood on the sheets. His eyes flickered with something unreadable, but he said nothing.

I acted as if nothing had happened, preparing his fresh clothes and gently reminding him about his important meeting before he left.

I pretended everything was fine.

Inside, I was bleeding out.

Married for three years. Secretly married for three years.

The Silver Moon wolves knew their Alpha had taken a Luna, but only a select few knew her name or what she looked like.

I didn’t care about any of that.

From then on, I became even more careful in taking care of Ferris.

Ferris was always buried in pack business, frequently skipping meals. At night, his stomach would cramp with excruciating pain.

So I woke before dawn every day, spending hours brewing medicinal herb soup.

When he was exhausted, I learned massage techniques to ease his tension.

He loved quiet, so I never made noise around him. I hid my naturally cheerful personality and softened my footsteps.

Gradually, Ferris seemed to accept me as his mate.

He started giving me small gifts on holidays.

When I fell ill, he personally hunted down rare herbs according to the healer’s prescriptions.

At night, he would hold me close, his palm pressed against my waist, his body heat scorching.

Ferris never mentioned divorce again, as if that agreement had never existed.

I was naive enough to believe that maybe, just maybe, he could learn to love me.

Until three months ago, when Ashley suddenly returned to the Silver Moon Pack.

Ferris rushed back to her side almost instantly.

He took her to dinner, went shopping with her, even canceled crucial pack meetings just because Ashley mentioned she was feeling “a little down.”

Standing by the window, watching Ferris’s car head toward Ashley’s apartment yet again, I finally understood.

True love is true love. No matter how much I gave, it could never compete with a single glance from Ashley.

At least the three year contract marriage was finally ending.

I told myself these three years had been nothing but a dream.

Now the dream was over. It was time for me to leave.

“The agreement from three years ago?”

Ferris’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I stared at him in shock, my throat tightening.

He… didn’t remember the divorce agreement?

For these three years, I had been counting down every single day, terrified that the moment our contract expired, he would leave without hesitation.

Yet now, he seemed to have completely forgotten about it.

I opened my mouth to remind him when Ferris’s phone suddenly rang.

The moment he answered, Ashley’s tear choked voice came through the speaker.

I couldn’t make out her words, but I watched Ferris’s expression change instantly.

“Don’t be scared. I’m coming right now.”

He hung up, grabbed his car keys, and bolted for the door.

In his rush, his shoulder slammed hard into me.

I stumbled backward, my spine hitting the doorframe with enough force to make me gasp in pain.

But Ferris never looked back. His figure had already vanished through the doorway.

I steadied myself against the wall and slowly made my way back to the bedroom. When I removed my jacket, a dark bruise was already blooming across my shoulder.

I retrieved the first aid kit and silently applied ointment to the injury, feeling as though my heart was being carved open with a dull blade, slice by agonizing slice.

I sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the darkening sky outside until my phone rang.

Ferris.

“Come to Silver Pine General Medical Center.”

My heart lurched. “What happened?”

“Just get here.”

When I arrived, I spotted Ferris standing outside the operating room from across the corridor. Ashley was nestled against his chest, crying pitifully.

My steps faltered. Something clamped tightly around my chest, making every breath a struggle.

“What’s going on?” I asked softly as I approached.

Ferris looked up at me. “Ashley’s mother has acute leukemia. She needs an immediate bone marrow transplant.”

I blinked in confusion. “And?”

“We’ve tested everyone in the Silver Moon Pack, including myself. No matches.” His tone remained flat. “You have a donation record on file at the medical center. You’re compatible.”

My pupils shrank as disbelief washed over me. “You want me to donate bone marrow?”

“It’s your responsibility as Luna.”

Ferris closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, only cold determination remained.

“Hold her down.”

At his command, several warriors stepped forward and gripped my shoulders. Another pulled out a syringe.

“Ferris Vargan!” I struggled desperately. “I already donated years ago. I can’t donate again. This will kill me! Let me go, or my father and the entire Stardust Pack will never forgive you!”

The warriors hesitated, their grip loosening as they looked to Ferris for guidance.

“You’d tell any lie to avoid donating,” Ferris said coldly. “Hold her. I’ll take full responsibility for any consequences.”

They didn’t dare defy their Alpha.

I was pinned down as the needle pierced my skin.

The anesthetic worked quickly. My consciousness blurred, my strength draining until I could no longer fight.

Nearby, a healer spoke quietly, “Alpha Ferris, this procedure requires a family member’s signature.”

Ferris took the pen and the papers. “I can sign right now.”

Family member….

My heart clenched violently.

Right. Legally, I was still his Luna.

This was the first time he had so readily acknowledged me as his Luna.

And it was only so I could donate bone marrow to Ashley’s mother.

How fucking ironic.

The nurse handed over the surgical consent form. Ferris wrote his name with careful, deliberate strokes.

For some inexplicable reason, his pen hesitated mid signature, and a sharp pain shot through his chest.

Ashley urged him gently, tears glistening in her eyes. “Are you having second thoughts?”

Ferris’s gaze flickered, but he said nothing. He finished signing and watched as I was wheeled into the operating room.

The moment those doors closed, my tears finally fell.

So this was how deeply Ferris loved Ashley, enough to sacrifice my life for her sake.

Ferris, I’m never going to love you again.

The surgical lights blazed on while the corridor fell silent except for the sound of breathing.

After I disappeared behind those doors, he stood at the end of the corridor, staring at that cold steel barrier for what felt like hours, like a caged wolf unable to catch his mate’s scent.

He tried to sit but lasted only seconds before springing back up to pace restlessly.

Only when he saw me being wheeled out of surgery did he finally exhale.

“How is she?”

The doctor removed his mask, but his expression remained grave. “The surgery went smoothly, but the Luna’s body is extremely weak. Recovery will be difficult. She’ll need careful, constant care.”

Ferris nodded. “I’ll go see her.”

He had barely taken a step toward the patient room when a hand caught his arm.

Ashley.

“Ferris,” she said softly, “the beta just came from the Werewolf Council. They need you back immediately to handle the border territory dispute. It can’t wait any longer.”

“I know you’re worried about her, but you’re the Alpha. The pack has to come first.”

Ferris swallowed as uncertainty flashed in his eyes.

Ashley stepped forward, blocking his path. “Go handle pack business. I’ll stay and take care of her. I promise, when she wakes up, I’ll be the first thing she sees.”

Ferris nodded and left the hospital with his subordinates.

I don’t know how much time passed before I slowly opened my eyes after the surgery.

I turned my head with difficulty, my throat feeling like sandpaper. My first instinct was to search for Ferris.

But the person in my line of sight was Ashley.

She smiled at me. “You’re finally awake. Thank you, Aurora. You saved my mother.”

I looked up at her without speaking.

Ashley wiped away tears, her voice thick with emotion. “I really never imagined, after all these years, Ferris would still love me this deeply.”

She paused, as if lost in memory.

“Do you know? Last year on my birthday, he flew all the way to Paris just to bring me a necklace. It was a design I’d mentioned liking once in passing, and he actually remembered all that time.”

“But I was still angry with him then. I threw the necklace right back at him and wouldn’t even let him through the door.”

My fingers clenched violently, nails digging deep into my palms.

I remembered perfectly. Last year, Ferris had told me he was traveling to Mississippi for business negotiations with the Ghost Wolf Pack.

When he returned, he had brought back a necklace and casually given it to me.

I had been overjoyed, treasuring it at the bottom of my jewelry box, too precious to even wear.

But it turned out that was Ashley’s reject, something he had carelessly passed along to me.

Ashley continued, “And the Christmas before last, I had a huge fight with my boyfriend at the time and posted something really depressing on Instagram. When Ferris saw it, he flew over that same night and stood outside my apartment building all night long. It was snowing heavily, but he just stood there, never daring to come up and knock.”

My heart twisted painfully.

I remembered that Christmas night. Ferris had been unusually passionate, making love to me seven times straight until dawn.

That entire night, he had been rough and relentless. Even when his harsh movements hurt me, I gritted my teeth and endured it.

Because I thought he was finally starting to feel something for me.

When I woke up the next morning, the bed beside me was already cold. I assumed he had left to handle urgent pack business.

It turned out he had rushed off to see Ashley.

“These past three years…” Ashley’s tears fell again. “I’ve been stubborn, deliberately avoiding contact with him. But Ferris never forgot me for a single day. He wrote me a letter every day, even though I never once replied.”

I suddenly found it hard to breathe.

How many late nights had I seen the study light on, thinking he was handling pack affairs? I had even brewed coffee specially to bring him.

It turned out he was writing love letters to Ashley.

I had always believed that at least during Ashley’s absence, Ferris genuinely wanted us to become a real married couple.

Now I understood. From beginning to end, it had all been my own delusional fantasy.

The heart I thought I had finally warmed belonged entirely to someone else.

Seeing Ashley about to continue, I abruptly stood up.

My face was pale as paper, but I forced my voice to remain calm. “I’m not feeling well. I need to rest.”

A flash of triumph crossed Ashley’s eyes. “Of course. You just had surgery. You should rest more.”

Her footsteps finally faded outside the door.

I lay on the hospital bed with my eyes open, staring at the blank ceiling.

After discharge, I silently packed all my belongings, waiting only for the divorce agreement’s expiration.

During this time, I could track Ferris’s activities daily through Ashley’s social media.

The surgery had been successful, but he never once came to check on me. Instead, he immediately arranged the finest private room for Ashley’s mother, flew in top medical teams from abroad, and personally supervised every treatment plan.

Ashley’s latest Instagram post was a photograph.

Ferris knelt on one knee, tying her shoelaces.

Her caption read: I’ll never meet anyone who loves me this much again.

My heart clenched violently. Tears splashed onto my phone screen, blurring the image of Ferris’s tender profile.

I remembered how I had cared for him with the same devotion all these years.

When his stomach troubled him, I brewed medicinal soups daily.

When work kept him busy, I left the lights on waiting for his return.

Every piece of fruit I brought him was peeled, cored, and cut into perfect bite sized pieces.

But now he was doing these things for someone else.

I took a deep breath, wiped away my tears, and mind linked Ferris.

After a long pause, Ferris responded coldly, “I should have told you not to interrupt when I’m working.”

For the first time, I cut him off.

“Ferris, let’s break our bond.”

Ferris clearly had not expected me to suggest severing our mate bond.

His body went rigid, amber eyes glowing faintly red in the dim light.

His wolf stirred restlessly within him, growling continuously in rejection of the proposal.

“I don’t agree.”

His voice was low and commanding, carrying an Alpha’s natural dominance, the ending notes revealing both anger and instinctive unwillingness.

I was stunned.

He had refused.

Refused to break the mate bond between us.

“The pack elders won’t allow it,” he said. “Your parents won’t support you either. You’re my Luna. That won’t change.”

Before I could respond, he ruthlessly severed the mind link.

I lay in the hospital bed, my throat constricting.

How foolish I was, still harboring that faint hope, fantasizing that he could not bear to let me go.

For one moment, I had sensed his wolf struggling, unwilling to release me.

But that was only because he needed me as a tool to control the pack elders.

It didn’t matter. In a month, this marriage would automatically expire anyway.

A week later, Ferris suddenly came home.

I was surprised. Logically, he should have been staying by Ashley’s side.

“Family dinner tonight. Get dressed,” he said curtly.

The maid brought in a beautifully wrapped gift box containing a brand new burgundy evening gown and earrings adorned with pigeon blood red moonstone gems.

“Alpha prepared this for you,” she said.

After I changed into the dress and earrings and stepped out, Ferris’s deep blue eyes fixed on me for a moment.

“Let’s go.”

I followed him to the car, thinking that I would be leaving in twenty three days and would not be taking any of his gifts with me.

“You look beautiful today,” he suddenly said.

I was speechless.

At the family dinner, everyone raised their glasses and made small talk.

Eventually, the conversation turned to Ferris and me.

“You’ve been married three years now. It’s time to have children.”

“Yes, now that Ferris is Alpha, you need to raise an heir for the pack.”

“Aurora, you really must hurry.”

I kept my eyes downcast, listening silently while unconsciously running my fingertips along the rim of my glass.

Just then, Ferris, who had not spoken, suddenly broke his silence.

“There’s no rush.”

His voice was not loud, but it instantly silenced the entire dining room.

Everyone’s expressions changed, but given Ferris’s status as Alpha, no one dared say more.

The atmosphere grew tense, and the meal ended in eerie silence.

After dinner, Ferris’s mother Victoria stood up, fixing me with a sharp look. “Aurora, come to the study with me.”

Everyone knew this meant she intended to pressure me about having children.

Ferris obviously understood too and frowned. “If you have something to say, say it to me directly.”

Victoria was about to speak when Ferris’s phone suddenly rang.

He glanced at the caller ID, his expression shifting as he immediately stepped aside to answer, his tone gentler than I had ever heard. “Ashley? What’s wrong?”

Victoria snorted coldly and turned to me. “Come with me.”

I pressed my lips together and silently followed.

The moment the study door closed, Victoria’s expression turned stormy.

“When Ferris said he wasn’t in a hurry to have an heir, why didn’t you, as Luna, try to change his mind?”

She pulled a porcelain bottle from a drawer and set it heavily on the desk. “This is the highly effective medicine made from red evening primrose that promotes ovulation in female wolves. Starting today, you’ll drink it daily and sleep with Ferris until you conceive.”

In the past, I would have submissively accepted it.

But this time, I swear to the Moon Goddess, in the less than thirty days remaining, I will no longer be the obedient girl who always says “Okay.”

I looked up, stared into her eyes, and spoke calmly and firmly. “I’m sorry, but I won’t take this medicine.”

Victoria’s pupils contracted. “What did you say?”

“I wanted you to take this medicine three years ago, but considering you’d just donated bone marrow to Ferris, I allowed you to recover your health first so you could bear healthy wolf pups.”

“And now you dare defy me? A bastard child actually thinks she’s Silver Moon’s Luna?”

When she said “bastard child,” a dull pain shot through my heart.

I bit my lip stubbornly. “I won’t take this medicine. Ferris doesn’t want children right now, and I respect his decision.”

All these years, Ferris had always used protection during intimacy.

Even on the rare occasions when passion overcame control, he would immediately watch me take morning after pills.

I had naively thought he just wasn’t ready for children yet.

Now I understood. He had never intended to have children with me.

Since I had decided to leave, I certainly wouldn’t let myself become pregnant with his child and create more complications.

“What did you say?” Victoria’s voice rose sharply.

“I won’t take it,” I repeated.

“You’ve gone too far.” Victoria trembled with rage. “As Luna of the Silver Moon Pack, you can’t even provide the pack with an heir.”

She immediately took the thorn whip used to punish werewolves from the servant’s hands and struck me hard with it.

My whole body trembled with pain, but I still refused to give in.

Giving birth to an heir was indeed one of Luna’s duties.

But I would soon no longer be Luna.

I clenched my teeth and endured the pain silently until the world before my eyes slowly turned black.

Before losing consciousness, I seemed to see Ferris rushing in anxiously.

Then I fell into an embrace filled with the scent of pine and sage.

“If that’s how it is, I’ll beat you until you understand Luna’s duties.”

When I woke, I found myself in a hospital bed.

I heard the chief werewolf therapist’s respectful voice. “Alpha, Luna's whip wounds are very deep. Some areas have damaged the dermis layer.”

“Use the best medicine. Assign the best doctors,” Ferris’s voice was low and cold. “Don’t let her scar.”

“Yes. We’ll do everything possible.”

Ferris sat beside the bed, looking at me with complex emotions. “Why didn’t you call for me when Mother was giving you trouble?”

I remembered his focused conversation with Ashley and smiled bitterly. “I saw you were busy.”

I paused, then asked softly, “If I had called, would you really have come immediately?”

“Of course,” Ferris answered without hesitation.

I was stunned.

This answer was completely different from what I had expected.

“I’ve handled things with the family,” he continued. “No one will trouble you about children again.”

“I understand.” I lowered my eyes. “You should go handle your business.”

“Why do you keep trying to send me away?” Ferris frowned.

I was somewhat bewildered. “Aren’t you very busy?”

Busy with pack affairs. Busy accompanying Ashley.

“I’m not busy lately.” He reached over to tuck my blanket. “I can take care of you these next few days.”

This was completely unexpected.

Over the following days, Ferris actually stayed at the hospital to care for me.

He adjusted my bed, fed me meals, and even personally changed my bandages.

One night when pain kept me awake, Ferris sat beside the bed, gently patting my back like he was comforting a child until I fell into deep sleep.

This tenderness made me feel like I had returned to our most intimate period.

But I wouldn’t let myself get lost in it again.

I had already decided to leave and wouldn’t look back.

A week later, the whip marks on my back had faded considerably.

That day, as Ferris was applying medicine, I accidentally let out a soft sound.

His movements suddenly stopped.

I looked back questioningly and saw his gaze had grown intense, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he seemed to be suppressing something with great effort.

The unmistakable reaction beneath him made my expression change instantly.

The air seemed to freeze in that moment.

Ferris slowly leaned closer like a predator approaching prey, his breathing becoming heavy and burning with overwhelming pressure.

“Ferris,” I called his name softly, but my voice was lighter and more tremulous than I had intended.

His hands gently cupped my face, fingertips burning hot. His lips were barely an inch from mine, his scorching breath falling on my lips as if he would kiss me the next second.

Just as his lips were about to descend.

Crash.

A sharp sound shattered the intimate atmosphere in the hospital room.

We both turned to see Ashley standing in the doorway, a fruit basket she had been carrying now on the floor with fruit scattered everywhere.

Her eyes were red rimmed, her voice trembling. “Did I interrupt something?”

Ferris abruptly pushed me away. “Ashley, it’s not what you think.”

His movement was too sudden.

Caught off guard, I fell backward off the hospital bed.

With a dull thud, the back of my head struck hard against the sharp corner of the bedside table, and blood immediately began flowing.