Chapter 83: Throwaway Slot

Before Steve could reach out to push open the heavy double doors of the study, a quiet, muffled vibration buzzed against my ribs.

I casually slid my hand into my jacket pocket, my thumb gliding over the screen to check the incoming message from Edgar.

—Investor E: I’m already on my way. Don’t sign anything and don’t bow your head.

A faint, fleeting smirk touched the edge of my lips before I locked the phone and tucked it back away.

Steve knocked twice, opened the heavy oak doors, and gestured for us to enter.

The moment our feet crossed the threshold, a suffocating, crushing weight dropped onto the room like an anvil. The Grey Moon Alpha was instantly flexing his Alpha aura—a blatant, arrogant display of dominance designed to force visitors onto their knees the second they walked in.

Valerie let out a choked gasp, her knees instantly buckling under the oppressive pressure, while Bradford staggered sideways, gasping for air as he fought to stay upright. Even Steve bowed his head, his shoulders tensing as he absorbed the heavy surge of authority.

I, on the other hand, didn’t even blink.

I stood dead center in the room, my hands shoved casually into my jacket pockets, my posture entirely relaxed as I stared straight ahead with an expression of sheer, unadulterated boredom. An old, unrefined Alpha aura meant nothing to an elite assassin with a solid mental fortitude. To me, his terrifying pressure was nothing more than a mild draft.

The oppressive weight in the room faltered, dying down as the man behind the massive mahogany desk froze in surprise.

He was fairly old, with thick grey hair slicked back, deep wrinkles around his sharp eyes, and an ego clearly as huge as the moon itself. He stared at me, his golden eyes narrowing in shock that a wolfless Omega was standing tall in his presence without breaking a sweat.

"Insolent girl," he rumbled, his voice thick with displeased authority.

I looked at his scowling, wrinkled face, my jaw setting into a flat line.

Yep, I thought dryly, holding his glare without a flinch. Nothing good is gonna come from this.

The old Alpha leaned back into his high-backed leather chair, his fingers lacing together over his stomach as his sharp, wrinkled eyes tracked my posture.

"I am Alpha Ludwig," he began, his voice deep and raspy, carrying the heavy cadences of someone who hadn’t been questioned in decades. "And I don’t appreciate low-castes causing unrest in my territory. First, an Enforcer brings me reports of public brawling outside your home. Then today, you incite a riot in the central market."

"Correction," I said, my tone smooth and completely unbothered as I stood my ground. "My mother was assaulted with a stone by your ’law-abiding’ citizens. I simply reminded them of basic manners."

Ludwig’s jaw tightened at my interruption, his bushy grey eyebrows knitting together. "Watch your tongue, Omega. You exist in this district by my pack’s grace." I raised a brow. He took in a breath and then continued. "However, I did not summon you here merely to discuss your appalling lack of discipline."

He reached for a thick, leather-bound folder resting on the edge of his desk, tossing it forward so it landed with a heavy thud on the polished wood.

"The Tournament of Power is 9 days away," Ludwig stated, his eyes locking onto mine with cold calculation. "Every pack in the region is required to submit a full roster of participants to fulfill the territorial quota. Enforcer Steve placed your name on the register as a filler candidate—a throwaway slot."

"Get to the point," I murmured flatly.

Bradford let out a tiny, frightened squeak beside me, clutching Valerie’s hand even tighter, but Ludwig merely sneered at my bluntness.

"The point, girl, is that you are an unbonded, wolfless Omega representing the Grey Moon name," Ludwig said, leaning forward, his voice dripping with condescension. "If you enter that arena and get slaughtered in the first three minutes, you make my pack look weak."

Isn’t it, though?

"I won’t have a useless weakling dragging down our standing."

He tapped a thick finger against the folder.

"I am giving you an ultimatum. Either you sign a waiver forfeiting your rights as a free citizen and enter the tournament under the direct ownership of the Grey Moon Vanguard—where my commanders will dictate your every move—or I will strip your family of their residency status and banish all of you from the district by nightfall."

A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the study. Bradford looked as if he might faint on the spot, his face completely drained of color, while Valerie trembled against his side.

I stared at the old Alpha, my lips twitching into a cold, mocking smirk as I let out a sharp, amused hum.

"Direct ownership?" I drawled, tilting my head. "You talk about your pack’s standing, yet you’re so utterly incompetent that you need to corner an Omega just to pad your ranks. Tell me, Ludwig—if your Vanguard is so formidable, why do you care so much about a single ’throwaway slot’?"

"Insolent brat!" Ludwig hissed, his face darkening with rage. He slammed his palm onto the desk and turned his glare to Steve. "Restrain her! Put this arrogant bitch on her knees!"

Steve lunged forward, reaching out to grab my shoulder, but before he could even touch me, Bradford and Valerie threw their bodies in front of me, shielding me with their own flesh and blood.

"Don’t touch my daughter!" Bradford yelled, his voice cracking with desperate paternal fury.

"Leave her alone! Please!" Valerie cried out.

"Get them off!" Ludwig roared, waving his hand in disgust.

Three more guards barged into the study, violently ripping my parents away. Bradford was shoved hard against the bookshelf, while two guards pinned Valerie’s arms behind her back, forcing her to her knees, and I could see she was in pain.

They were hurting them.

"Mother! Father!" I called out, my pulse spiking as anger flared within my chest.

Steve smirked, thinking he had me backed into a corner. He reached out with both hands, stepping in to force me down by the back of my neck.

He didn’t even realize what hit him.

Before his fingers could graze my skin, I dipped low, grabbed his reaching wrist, and executed a swift, brutal hip throw.

SLAM!

The floorboards rattled as Steve’s body hit the ground with deafening impact. His breath rushed out in a sharp gasp, his eyes rolling back as he lay dazed and paralyzed on the floor, completely clueless as to how he had ended up there.

I straightened up smoothly, stepping right over Steve’s groaning body and dusting off my sleeves.

"This is who you want to teach me a lesson?" I scoffed, letting out a dark, ringing laugh as I looked straight at Ludwig. "These weaklings? Ha! And you were worried about me making this pack look weak? Good luck with that."

Ludwig’s eyes bulged in absolute, furious disbelief. "You... you miserable creature!"

Unable to contain his rage, Ludwig’s Alpha aura erupted violently. Above his head, the spectral projection of a massive, shadowy grey wolf materialized, its golden eyes glowing as it threw its head back and let out a ear-splitting, commanding roar designed to crush my spine and force me to submit.

At the roar, the windows rattled in their frames. The guards winced, ducking their heads under the oppressive weight of their Alpha’s power.

But I didn’t kneel. I didn’t even flinch.

In the split second that the spectral wolf opened its maw, I rushed forward.

My speed surpassed even the Alpha’s comprehension. Before Ludwig could even process that I had moved, I cleared the distance across his desk, my left hand shooting out like a vice to grab him firmly by his collar.

With my right hand, I whipped out one of my silver daggers, pressing the sharp edge directly against his throbbing jugular.

The spectral wolf above his head sputtered and dissolved into thin air as Ludwig froze solid.

"Put that mutt away, old man," I whispered, leaning in until my lips were inches from his ear, "or I will end you."