"Ruby Barnette, I, The Alpha, reject you as my Luna!"

The thunderous shout from the alpha filled the palace hall, making everyone in the room wouldn't dare speak a word, and didn't dare to move an inch.

Underneath the alpha's throne, a woman wearing a white dress lowered her head deeply. She felt reluctant to make eye contact with the alpha, who was also the King of the Wridal Kingdom.

"Your Majesty, please think carefully before you make a decision." The royal adviser—Edgar Greenway—knelt before Greysen Hortone, The Alpha. "If you reject the Luna right now. It will take years to find a replacement."

Greysen grunted. His expression looked gloomy when he said, "It's better for me to die than have to accept that disabled woman as my Luna!"

"How can such a weak woman like her be able to become the Queen of the Wridal Kingdom?!" continued Greysen in rage.

That night, when the moon was shining brightly, the priest at the moon temple announced the Moon Goddess would tell a woman's name who would become the Luna of the Alpha.

Because of that announcement, all women in the Wridal Kingdom ran to the palace hall wearing white dresses as a marriage symbol and a sign that they were ready to become the bride of the King of Wridal.

But, no one expected the moon goddess would destine a weak and disabled werewolf to become Greysen's Luna.

Ruby Barnette.

A werewolf who couldn't turn into a wolf and couldn't talk since she was born.

Ruby clenched her fist tightly and gritted her teeth. Her ruby eyes lit up in outrage and annoyance.

She was mute, but that didn't mean she was such a foolish woman.

[I'd also rather die than become your Luna!] Shouted Ruby in her mind.

Everyone looked at her with pity and contempt look. Several people whispered to each other, saying that it was only natural for the alpha to reject Ruby Barnette.

Some women also looked at Ruby with disdain, disappointed that such a useless woman was destined to become Luna.

"The Moon Goddess must have made a mistake!" Greysen shouted once again, "My decision to reject her is irrevocable! If anyone wants to object to my decision, they could meet the gallows!"

After Greysen said that, the royal advisor didn't dare to speak his mind any longer. It was better for Edgar to follow the king's order than to end up with a death sentence.

Ruby's body suddenly fell to the floor. A chronic pain enveloped her heart as if a thousand knives were slashing her heart slowly.

It must be a curse from The Moon Goddess.

Luna, who was rejected by the alpha, would suffer severe heartache and would make Luna's heart feel broken and painful. Even rumors say a rejected Luna could die because she couldn't stand the pain.

Tears rolled down Ruby's cheeks because she couldn't hold back the pain in her chest. In her despair, Ruby also cursed the Moon Goddess, the alpha, the people around her, and her own body, which thirsted for Greysen's acceptance even though her heart hated the man to death.

Ruby opened her mouth and wanted to say various kinds of swearing, but only a faint voice escaped her lips.

[I curse you, Greysen! I will curse you until I die!]

"Guards! Take that disabled woman out of the palace! I'm sick of seeing her face!"

Two guards pulled Ruby's arm tightly, forcing her to stand up despite her painful condition.

Roughly Ruby immediately warded off the hands of the two soldiers. She gave Greysen a sharp look before finally snorting away from the palace hall.

Hundreds of pairs of eyes immediately judged Ruby's behavior, who did not know manners in front of the alpha, who was the ruler of the Wridal Kingdom.

However, Ruby ignored them. She had received too much humiliation that night, so she didn't want to be sent out in a dishonorable manner.

Holding the pain in her chest, Ruby walked towards the hall's exit. She tried to wipe away the tears that kept flowing because she felt there was no point in crying over an asshole.

"Stop! How dare you act so impolite in front of me!" shouts Greyson.

As the strongest alpha in the Wridal Kingdom, Greysen can command the werewolves under his leadership. Therefore, when Greysen ordered Ruby to stop, the woman stopped in her tracks.

"Ruby Barnett! Didn't your family teach you manners?! Should I punish you and your entire family?!"

Right after Greysen said that, a middle-aged man wearing luxurious clothes immediately kneeled in front of Greysen. "Your Majesty, Please forgive my family. My daughter, Ruby, is a bit of an idiot and misbehaves sometimes. If His Majesty permits, then I will be the one to discipline her myself."

Ruby sneered inwardly, [Jerk! Earlier, you were silent when your daughter was insulted but immediately spoke up as soon as your family name was threatened.]

But thanks to his father's words, Jacob Barnette. Greysen's expression gradually improved after taking a deep breath. "Very well, Marquess Barnette. Since I still appreciate your services to this kingdom, I will spare your family and let you discipline your daughter."

"But if your daughter behaves insolently in front of me once again, then don't expect me to forgive you later," added Greysen.

Jacob hastily bowed his back as a sign of respect. "Your Majesty is very generous. Thank you for giving my family a chance."

Greysen then sat back down on his throne. He said lazily, "If only your daughter weren't disabled, maybe you could get promoted. Unfortunately, she's just a stain in your family."

Greysen's words made anger in Jacob's heart explode. He also blames Ruby for being born with a disability and being a disgrace to his family.

"Your Majesty is right. It is a pity."

• • •

Tak!

A rattan stick was smacked into Ruby's back, the blow so strong and so loud it echoed through the room. Ruby grimaced softly, trying to endure the pain she was used to.

"Shameless! His Majesty has rejected you, but you're still acting arrogant!" shouted Jacob.

Tak!

"Why does a disabled child like you have to be born in my family?!"

Tak!

"At the previous noble's gathering, people made fun of me for having a useless child! But tonight, His Majesty insulted me for having a stain in the family!"

Tak!

Tak!

Tak!

The rattan stick was struck repeatedly without mercy. The rough part of the rattan tore Ruby's clothes, then scratched the woman's skin until she bled.

Such punishment is nothing new for Ruby. However, for some reason, her body ached so badly that night. It was not only her physique but also her heart that had to endure the curse of the Moon Goddess.

"Dad! Why don't you kick her out of our family? I'm always embarrassed whenever my friends find out that I'm still blood-related to Ruby!" whined Liliana Barnette, the third child of Marquess Barnette.

Taylor Barnette, Marquess Barnette's eldest son, also spoke up. "Yeah, there's no point in keeping trash in this family."

After being satisfied with beating Ruby using a rattan stick, Marquess Barnette immediately threw the stick on the floor and kicked Ruby until the woman fell on the floor.

"All of you are right. If I continue to let her live as part of the Barnette Family, then our family will continue to receive insults from other nobles," said Marquess Barnette.

The Marchioness, Demetria Barnette, had the same thought. "We better get rid of her crazy mother too. It would be better if the Barnette Family took out the trash like them."

Ruby gritted her teeth for the umpteenth time. Her body trembled with anger while her sharp eyes stabbed straight at the Marchioness, who always wore a sly expression. Ruby can accept the humiliation toward her but can't accept that her mother was also insulted in front of her.

Marchioness then bent her back and whispered beside Ruby. "You and your crazy mother should have died long ago, just like your older brother Oscar."

Immediately Ruby's gaze grew fiercer. Her anger immediately soared when her sibling's name was mentioned.

Slap!

Within seconds, a brutal slap landed on Ruby's cheek. "How dare you look at me so impolitely!"

Due to the increasingly unfavorable situation, Marquess Barnette finally decided to expel Ruby from the room. "Guards! Lock this child in concubine Helena's room! I want to let her and her mother sleep tonight before they get kicked out tomorrow."

The guards immediately took Ruby away violently. This time the woman didn't fight back because her body was too weak, so she could only surrender when dragged by several guards.

Before Ruby left the room, she looked at the figures of her family one by one and saw that there was an aura of color that always covered their bodies.

The color was green.

A symbol of disgust.

The green color around them seemed bright, showing that their disgust towards Ruby was great, to the point of not wanting to stare at Ruby's face for too long.

[If I had a choice, I also don't want to be part of this nasty family.]