Before leaving, I applied to a university in the northern grasslands. After inquiring about all the necessary preparations for the university and the various fees, I felt reassured enough to head back home.
Returning to the Northgate mansion, I heard Sophia’s pitiful voice as soon as I walked through the door.
“Adi, you left my sister to come back and keep me company. Won’t she be angry?”
“No, Elena listens to me. She would never cause trouble. You get cold hands and feet every winter, and I worry about you being home alone.”
Sophia smiled shyly, but her voice quickly dropped again. “After you and my sister become mates, will you still treat me as well as you do now?”
Adrian answered decisively, “Of course! I’ll always be good to you!”
After a pause, he added, “If Elena treats you badly, I’ll break our mate bond.”
I bit my lip hard to keep myself from crying out loud. Even though I had been reborn, hearing my former mate speak so callously still hurt deeply.
Taking a deep breath to suppress my sadness, I pretended not to have heard anything and walked into the house.
Adrian emerged from Sophia’s room, saying awkwardly, “Sophia isn’t feeling well. I was just checking on her.”
In my previous life, I would have started fighting with him immediately. Their excessive intimacy and closeness were unacceptable to me, and I would argue with him every time I witnessed it.
However, this time I just hummed softly in acknowledgment and turned to go back to my room. A flash of surprise crossed Adrian’s face, as if he had not expected me to be so calm.
“Elena,” he called out to me.
After a long moment, he spoke hesitantly, “If you want, we can have a simple marking ceremony at home instead of going to a hotel.”
I was somewhat surprised that he would voluntarily suggest this in this lifetime. He must have decided to offer me some compensation after seeing that I was not fighting or arguing.
I shook my head calmly, rejecting his proposal. “There’s no need for all that ceremony. Marking can be done anytime.”
He froze, clearly not expecting me to refuse his offer.
“Elena, are you still angry that Adi left you to come back and take care of me?” Sophia emerged from her room, looking at me pitifully.
She was wearing a beautiful dress — the wedding gown I had bought explicitly for the marking ceremony. I had saved up my living expenses for half a year to buy it, and I had never even worn it myself.
Seeing my gaze, Sophia explained frantically, “I saw this beautiful wedding dress hanging by your bed and couldn’t help but try it on. I just forgot to take it off. Elena, you’re not angry, are you?”
Adrian instinctively started to tell me not to be angry, “Elena, don’t…”
I interrupted him calmly, “It’s fine. You look beautiful in it. Keep it. I’ve never worn it anyway.”
Under their surprised and puzzled gazes, I returned to my room and locked the door.
I began quietly packing my luggage. Studying at Northern Grassland Werewolf University was my dream. In my previous life, I had given up my education for Adrian, willingly sacrificing everything for this family.
Fortunately, it was not too late now. I just wanted to live for myself.
I would be able to leave this place in three days. Before then, I had to pack everything as quickly as possible, as I would never return to this place again.
A knock at the door suddenly broke the silence. After a long while, I reluctantly went over to open it.
“Why did it take you so long to answer? Come down for dinner. I had the cooks make your favorite, venison heart.”
“There’s no need. I already ate outside.”
“That’s impossible. You never spend money on eating out.”
My heart stung. In the past, I had saved all of my living expenses to buy him gifts, but every carefully chosen present had ended up in Sophia’s hands.
