Chapter 6: Severing Ties

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

My father’s had swung upwards, about to hit me. But my mother saw it in time and quickly got up to stop him, despite not knowing whether she would be strong enough to even do so. In the end, my father didn’t swing his hand toward me. He simply looked at me deeply and sighed heavily.

I knew that I had disappointed my father who had always been so proud of me. But having an abortion to save our reputation and inheritance of the pack was something I couldn’t compromise on no matter what.

The more my father looked into my blue eyes that I inherited from him, the more he saw the werewolf I had grew to become, the result of his blood, sweat, and tears.

He finally made the biggest decision of his life, a decision that had exhausted all his strength to commit.

“Ellie,” said he. “If you don’t abort this child, you’ll no longer be my daughter.”

My mother’s hand that was comforting me on my back suddenly stopped. She stared at my father with wide eyes without saying a word. This was a big matter, and Mother knew clearly that Father had already made up his mind. There was nothing she could do to change the situation or his mind.

To me, my father’s words echoed as loud as a horn blaring from the ends of the world. My heart was beating so fast I wouldn’t be surprised if I collapsed from a heart attack.

I looked at my mother who was already in tears. She had always been beautiful. Although she didn’t have the charm from her youth anymore, she exuded a different and more mature charm. Before this, she never had a dark moment. Now, her hair was a mess and her face was drenched in tears. The traces of time had turned into fine lines that crawled up her face.

I looked at my father again. In my impression, my father had always been very tall. I grew up sitting on his shoulders. He was so strong and reliable. Although he was often occupied with all sorts of complicated matters, he still raised me personally. Now that I was looking at him, he no longer had the high-spirited look or invincible body.

These were the two people I could never let go of for as long as I live.

But now, I had a child. No matter what, I couldn’t do something as shameful as betraying the Moon Goddess just to save my own skin. No matter what, a mother couldn’t abandon her child. Now, I was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

But I had to make a decision, and so I eventually did.

I fiercely kowtowed three times to my parents, the floor thudded with each kowtow I made. By the time I looked back up at them, blood was already dripping down my forehead. But I didn’t notice it at all.

“Father, Mother, I’m sorry, but I have to keep this child.”

I would never give up on my relationship with my family. But I was the only family my child had.

Mother simply stared at me, mouth agape. Eventually, her eyes rolled back and she fainted in Father’s arms.

I hurriedly got up to check on my mother’s condition but Father pushed me away as he bitterly said, “You can leave.” He turned around with Mother in his arms and no longer looked at me.

My hand was still outstretched mid-air towards the space where Mother was.

Father didn’t get angry at me, but I knew from his words that he was disappointed in me.

I knelt down again and kowtowed three times to my parents’ backs. I looked at them one last time before stepping out of the house.

This way, I wouldn’t embarrass the pack.

And it wasn’t until later that I found out Father had run to the steps of our home the moment I left, sitting there, awaiting my return.

The moment I stepped out of the house, I felt my entire body losing strength. I wandered aimlessly on the streets like a lonely ghost with nowhere to go. And it was true, I had nowhere to go, and I started crying like a ghost.

I eventually came upon a park and decided to spend the night on a bench. As I lowered my head and seriously thought about where to go, I bumped into a thick chest.

Just as I was about to apologize, I looked up and saw that it was Kans.

Kans saw the tears on my face and surprisingly didn’t laugh at me. Instead, he gently said, “You’re crying so badly. Don’t cry, I’m here.”

He reached out to wipe my tears, but I turned my face away to avoid him. I wasn’t sure if my current identity would allow him to treat me the same way he used to.

Seeing that I had avoided him, Kans slowly retracted his hand. As if to hide his embarrassment, he laughed awkwardly for a long time.

“Yili told me that you’ve been chased out,” said Kans. “She’s grounded, which means she can’t come to look for you. So she sent me instead.”

He didn’t ask about anything else, but I could tell that he wanted to. I carefully asked, “Do you know about it?”

I didn’t think what I had done was shameful, but it didn’t mean that others wouldn’t think so. Which was why I didn’t want anyone else to know. It would make it impossible for me to stand tall and proud as the Ellie I once was.

Kans hesitated for a long time before nodding.

He had seen me at my worst but never judged me. But his hesitation at this moment made me realize our current reality. An invisible chasm appeared between Kans and me, instantly separating the two of us. He and I could never return to how we were before.