Liliana was gasping for breath. Cassian’s attacks came one after another, forcing her to keep defending without a moment to catch her breath.
"Again!" Cassian commanded in a tone that left no room for refusal.
Liliana quickly got back on her feet and took a fighting stance just as the next attack struck her.
"Again! Get up!" he barked once more.
Three days had passed, but Liliana still couldn’t block Cassian’s attacks. Even simply fighting back felt impossible.
"Use your wolf instincts, Liliana!" Cassian snapped as the girl fell for the fiftieth time that day.
"Brother... let me rest for a moment," Liliana pleaded, gasping for breath.
"Liliana, you’re a werewolf who’ll be taking the name Draven very soon. How can you be this weak?" Cassian stared at her with a look of dissatisfaction.
"But Brother, I..."
"Get up!" Cassian cut her off again.
Hearing the note of dissatisfaction in Cassian’s voice, Liliana swallowed hard and immediately stood at the ready. The barrage of blows landing on her body was proof of her inadequacy.
Her body was covered in bruises, but even so, Liliana didn’t dare complain. Not a single tear fell. She knew this was for her own good. Mother Olive had already told her that the fastest way to awaken Silver was to strengthen her body and abilities.
As dusk approached, Cassian stopped the training. He tossed a bottle of cold water handed to him by a servant toward Liliana.
"Finish it. Today you were just as disappointing as yesterday, Liliana."
"I’m sorry, Big Brother," Liliana replied guiltily.
Liliana didn’t realize that the training Cassian was giving her wasn’t ordinary training, it was a technique commonly used by Alphas to subdue the Betas under them. Cassian waved his hand, then walked away without looking back.
Liliana stared at Cassian’s back, sighed, and then finished the water she’d just been given. Instead of resting and returning to her room, she stood up and mimicked every one of Cassian’s attack moves without the slightest mistake. All of his movements were etched clearly in her memory.
Time passed until the day of the ceremony to formally induct Liliana as a member and adopted daughter of the Draven family arrived.
Liliana stood beside the group, wearing a knee-length black dress with her long black hair flowing freely. Her figure was now fuller than when she first arrived. She looked as beautiful as a fairy, if one ignored the scar on her face.
"This is my adopted daughter, Liliana Forst," Viktor said in front of all the members. "Starting today, she will bear my last name, Draven. Liliana, come forward and introduce yourself."
Liliana stepped up beside Viktor with graceful movements, just as Mega had taught her over the past few days.
"Introduce yourself, and let a drop of your blood fall into the sacred chalice before you."
"Yes, Father."
Liliana took a deep breath, she wasn’t used to appearing in public, and this was her first time doing so.
"My name is Liliana, Liliana Draven. Your Alpha’s adopted daughter. I ask for your guidance in the future."
All the members bowed respectfully in unison. "We salute Miss Liliana Draven!" they exclaimed in unison.
Liliana nodded slowly, then walked toward the chalice in the center of the room.
Srat!
A small cut on the tip of her finger instantly caused blood to flow rapidly into the sacred chalice. Once there was enough, Viktor stepped forward and cut his finger as well, followed by Olive and Cassian.
All eyes were fixed on them, awaiting the outcome of the Blood Union ritual. The Draven elders stood ready in every corner of the room, on guard against the possibility of rejection.
The Blood Union ritual for family membership is a rare practice among werewolves. Many of them consider it a dangerous ancient tradition because it can quickly kill a werewolf if they are not a compatible match with the family.
However, for the Draven family, it is a mandatory law. The bond of blood unification serves to unite the spirit of someone who wishes to be recognized as a member of the family.
The Draven family never makes room for liars and traitors. Only those destined by the Moon Goddess may become part of their family.
As their blood filled the chalice, a beam of light enveloped the four of them. Mega sat calmly, observing everything that was happening from her chair.
The emotional bond between them was clearly beginning to form. Liliana’s face quickly turned pale, she bit her lip hard, feeling an intense urge to walk away immediately.
Liliana shook her head, this was her last hope for a peaceful life. She refused to fail.
Even though she knew she would only be used by the Draven family, after spending a week with them, she couldn’t deny that she, too, felt genuine sincerity.
Her body trembled violently. The red light radiating from her chest slowly turned white, merging with the light enveloping the entire Draven family.
Cassian stared at Liliana’s increasingly pale face, his hand moved quickly, gripping her arm and forcing her to hold on.
After a quarter of an hour, the red light from Liliana’s heart turned a perfect white, exactly like the light surrounding the four of them.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief they had thought they would be seeing Liliana’s corpse today. But no.
Cassian steadied Liliana’s body as she nearly collapsed beside him. "You stupid wolf! Are you going to pass out just because of this?"
Liliana looked up into Cassian’s dark eyes, then glanced back and forth between Olive and Viktor. She could feel their sincere warmth, no lies, not even a hint of malice. Tears immediately welled up in her eyes. She stood up and rushed to hug Viktor and Olive. "Dad... Mom..."
Viktor didn’t say anything, he just patted her back gently. As for Olive, she smiled widely the moment she saw Liliana, who was now willing to show affection toward her.
"Hey, you silly wolf! Are you going to forget about your big brother? Aren’t you going to hug me and say thank you?"
Liliana narrowed her eyes upon hearing Cassian’s voice. She didn’t know how the bad rumors about her had spread throughout the academy.
Although at first she’d thought Cassian was just like the rumors suggested, since he’d often give her sharp stares at the academy whenever she was bullied by Valerie, Alaric, and Adrian’s friends.
"Cassian, keep quiet if you don’t want to be assigned to Marovella this year," Viktor said when he realized his son was still trying to bother Liliana.
Cassian stared at his father for a moment, then quickly shut his mouth.
At first, Viktor had indeed only wanted to take advantage of Liliana. But after a week of interacting with her, he realized that Liliana was far more valuable than he had initially thought.
For the first time, Viktor considered protecting her, rather than exploiting her.