Chapter 81: So?

"You will die sooner or later if you continue carrying the Pack Draven name," Cassian said firmly.

"I don’t want to!"

Liliana immediately stepped forward and grabbed Cassian’s legs.

"You are my family. Ever since you decided to make me part of Pack Draven, I have considered you my family. So I will continue carrying this name," she declared.

Cassian reached into his pocket and took out a letter.

"This is from Father. He has already considered many things and all the possibilities that might arise if you continue using our pack’s name."

He took a deep breath before continuing.

"Pack Draven might still be able to survive if you stay with us, but Father also understands the burden you will eventually have to bear. The Emperor’s hatred toward Pack Draven... I’m sure you’ve seen it for yourself, haven’t you?"

Liliana shook her head as she wiped away her tears.

"Are you afraid?" she asked. "Afraid that I will drag you all down because of my wolf? Because of the abilities I possess?"

"Don’t be ridiculous!" Cassian exclaimed. "Do you think—"

"Then go on."

Liliana interrupted him, her voice trembling.

"Don’t stop. Don’t abandon me halfway. Let me remain part of your family. Let me be your sister, Father and Mother’s daughter."

"Liliana..."

"Brother, please. In this world, you are the only family I have left. You were the ones willing to accept me when I had absolutely nothing. Please."

"Liliana, you know very well that Father Alpha didn’t even fully consider you his daughter when he first adopted you."

"I don’t care."

Cassian let out a heavy sigh. "Don’t make me repeat this conversation for the third time, Liliana."

"Then never do it again. Let this be the last time."

Cassian fell silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Did you know that I liked you from the very beginning? Didn’t Father explain everything to you?"

Liliana raised her face to look at Cassian. "I know. I’ve known ever since I first used my wolf’s power on you."

Cassian’s gaze lingered on Liliana’s brown eyes. His forehead creased slightly.

"But I also know that you genuinely care about me," Liliana continued. "You consider me your little sister. Your family. The only sibling you have."

"Ha!" Cassian lowered his head. He roughly ran a hand through his black hair.

"Brother, please. Make me a true part of your family."

Liliana took a shaky breath before continuing.

"I will use all the abilities and advantages I have as their mate to help you protect Pack Draven. I will also help you withstand the Emperor’s pressure. I won’t let them destroy this pack any further."

She looked at Cassian earnestly.

"You can use me."

"You’ll die." Cassian’s voice grew heavy. "You really will die. Don’t you realize that?"

"So what? If you hadn’t found me back then, protected me, and asked Father Alpha to adopt me, I would have died long before I ever reached this academy. So what else do I have to fear?"

"Aren’t you afraid the Draven family will take advantage of you even further?"

"Then let them." Liliana looked at Cassian without hesitation. "I am Liliana Draven. I will never give up this name. Even if one day you truly cast me out."

Cassian rubbed the corners of his eyes, which had begun to redden. "Damn it. So that nightmare really is coming true? I, Cassian Draven, am actually going to have a little sister this foolish."

Liliana looked at him with eyes just as red, then nodded.

"I’ll remain foolish whenever I’m with you. Let me be your foolish little sister forever. Don’t let me become smart. Let me rely on your clever mind, Brother."

"If you really want to keep being a foolish girl, then I’ll graciously become the smart older brother who takes care of you from now on."

A smile finally spread across Liliana’s face. She stood up and threw herself into Cassian’s arms.

"I’ll stay foolish. I won’t become smart. I’ll rely on you forever."

Cassian returned her embrace. The chains that had seemed to bind his chest all this time slowly began to disappear.

"I, Cassian Draven, will be the only brother Liliana Draven has. And I will be the only smartest person for this foolish girl."

After their lengthy conversation ended, Cassian returned to the dean’s office after receiving a call from one of Leonhardt’s subordinates.

"Come in," the dean ordered after hearing a knock on the door.

Cassian opened the door, entered, and sat down in the empty chair.

The dean pushed a sheet of paper toward him.

Cassian picked it up and read its contents for a moment before nodding.

"Have you settled things with Liliana?" the dean asked.

Cassian looked up but gave no answer.

"She is not your destined mate," the dean continued. "Your bond is different. You share another kind of destined connection with her."

"You’ve known about this for a long time?"

The dean smiled faintly. "With my abilities, do you really think you could hide something like that from me?"

"Leonhardt, Lucien, and Vincent will make Liliana much stronger in the future," the dean added in a calmer voice.

Cassian’s forehead creased slightly.

"I thought you would have realized this by now."

Cassian shook his head. He clearly still didn’t understand what the dean meant.

"Xavier," the dean said. "He is not an ordinary wolf."

"I know."

The dean stood up, took a book from the shelf, and handed it to Cassian.

"Read this. Make sure you understand its contents."

Cassian accepted the book and glanced briefly at its cover.

"Red-eyed wolves with red fur," the dean murmured. He took a deep breath. "They are not a pure wolf bloodline."

"What do you mean?"

"Cassian, the existence of a wolf like Xavier is almost as rare as Liliana’s."

"Wait." Cassian immediately interrupted him. "They aren’t rare. They are clearly—"

The dean shook his head. "No pure wolf would lose its own Alpha aura just to suppress the members of its pack."

Cassian’s eyes widened slightly as he realized what the dean meant.

"The bloodline of Pack Laurent has been tainted for a long time."

"Does the Emperor know about this?" Cassian asked.

The dean sat back down and leaned against his chair.

"Do you really think the Emperor would be unaware of something like this?"

"So?"

"The Emperor is the only person besides me who knows the truth. Even Pack Laurent itself doesn’t know."

"Dean... was the Emperor the one who—"

"Watch your mouth."

The dean’s voice turned stern. "Keep that suspicion to yourself."

He looked at Cassian seriously.

"You are the only one who can help Liliana decide the future of Pack Laurent."