Shadow's Hand - Chapter 30: Morpher

The entire Yunzhou knew that the Ye Family had a new step-child in the house: Ning Li, a low-born and barely literate. However, when she looked at her 17 years old self in the mirror after coming back to life, she grinned.At 17, her step-siblings had yet destroyed her looks and stolen her glory—she still had everything with her. Since she was given an opportunity to start over, she ought to take revenge on everyone who had wronged her before. It would be interesting.After Ning Li was chased out of the Ye Family, she was cherished by the most popular solo singer in the entertainment industry, protected by the top international racer, courted by the heir to a multimillion corporation, and loved by her billionaire grandfather who wanted her to inherit the family business.Even Second Master Lu said to her, “Hold up you little brat, I think you should come home with me.”Rumor had it that Second Master Lu was handsome and beyond any girl’s reach until that one fateful day, when someone saw a drawing of a cool and proud young boy with bangs covering his eyes fall out from Second Master Lu’s book.The news spread like wildfire overnight, and on the next day, Second Master Lu was questioned. Ning Li coincidentally passed by, and upon considering her relationship with him in her past life, she stepped in and shut down the busybodies.Lu Huaiyu stared at the girl before him as he subtly put away the love letter in his hands and said with a smile, “I shall repay you with my body for saving my life.”A long while later, Ning Li saw herself in that particular drawing and she was silenced. She knew it was all a huge mistake.

WARNING: MATURE CONTENTI was eight when my world burned. My family was slaughtered; my home was reduced to ash. And the ones responsible? Gone. All they left behind was a black bandana embroidered with a nightshade thorn—a symbol of death.For ten years, I trained in the shadows. I became a weapon. Now, my hunt leads me to Prestige Supernatural Academy (PSA), the most elite werewolf school in the world—a place ruled by four Alpha heirs with too much power, arrogance, and dark desires.The night I arrive, I cross paths with Dristan, Kai, and Axel—heirs to the East, North, and West Alpha Kings.Arrogant. Vicious. Gods among wolves.They see me as nothing. A weak, powerless stray. They humiliate me, taunt me, overpower me— making me want to rip them apart.So, I make a vow: I’ll destroy them before they ever get the chance to destroy me.Then, on the eve of my 18th birthday, the Blood Moon rises. My wolf awakens. My power surges. And fate? That cruel, twisted bitch shackles me to all three of them.Mates.I want to reject them.I burn for them instead.And when I meet Xade, the wicked, silver-tongued heir to the Middle Belt Alpha King, the final bond snaps into place.Four possessive, dominant, and dangerously irresistible alphas.One vengeful, unbreakable wolf.And a deadly secret tying them to my past.Loving them could destroy me.Hating them could kill me.But in the end… who will ruin whom?And, fuck—why does my traitorous body want all four of them to do it?***************“Say it.”Dristan’s voice was smooth and controlled in a way that promised devastation underneath.I swallowed hard, my pulse hammering as he cornered me against the desk. Kai was behind me, his warmth pressing into my back, his breath teasing my neck.Axel leaned in, lips curved in a sinful smirk, his hazel green eyes dark with amusement. “Say it, sweetheart. Say you don’t want us and we’ll let you be—maybe.”I clenched my fists. I wanted to tell them to fuck off—but my traitorous body? It was already betraying me. My skin burned. My heart raced. My thighs clenched against the insufferable ache they caused just by existing.I lifted my chin, ignoring the heat curling low in my stomach. “I don’t—”“Liar.”The single word came from Xade, who had been silent until now. He was sitting in the professor’s chair, his crystal blue eyes burning into mine. He didn’t have to touch me. His voice alone was enough to undo me.He smirked, tilting his head. “You can fight it all you want, little wolf. But we can smell it.”Axel’s fingers traced the pulse at my throat. “Your heart’s pounding.”Kai’s lips brushed my ear. “Your body’s betraying you, love.”Dristan exhaled slowly, his gaze locked onto mine like a predator savouring its prey. “Your scent doesn’t lie, mate.”Fuck.My entire body was on fire. My legs trembled. My wolf purred in my head, eager to submit.I wouldn’t. I couldn’t.So, I did the only thing I could—I shoved Axel back, spun around, and tried to escape.I didn’t make it.Kai grabbed my wrist, yanking me back into his chest. I gasped, my palms slamming against his rock-solid torso.His golden eyes burned into mine. “Where do you think you’re going?”Axel was behind me now, his fingers sliding under my jaw, forcing my head up. “We’re not done with you, sweetheart.”Dristan smirked. “Not even close, mate.”“We're just getting started,” Xade drawled.I was trapped. Caged.And the worst part?I didn’t want to run.

The jeers followed her like a persistent shadow. “Murderer!” the crowd screamed, their faces contorted in a grotesque parody of the adoration she once commanded.Just months ago, they had screamed her name, their voices a deafening roar as she shimmied across the stage, a beacon of light and pop perfection. Now, their cheers had morphed into venomous hisses, their eyes burning with a hatred that chilled her to the bone.Noelle clutched her lawyer's arm, his face a mask of grim determination. The cameras flashed, capturing her every move, every tremor of fear. The headlines screamed: “Pop Princess Plummets: Noelle Accused of Murder.” The irony wasn't lost on her. Her life, once a carefully constructed fairytale of fame and fortune, had become a grotesque tragedy.The trial was a circus. The whispers, the sneers, the relentless scrutiny – it was a constant assault on her senses. Her once loyal fans, the ones who'd plastered her face on their bedroom walls, now reveled in her downfall. They devoured every salacious detail, every whispered accusation, every tear she dared to shed.The verdict was a foregone conclusion. Guilty.Noelle watched the judge pronounce the sentence, her mind a whirlwind of disbelief and despair. Death by lethal injection.‘At least they did not give me the electric chair’ she thought to herself in a poor attempt at humor.Months later, a solitary figure knelt at her grave, the wind whipping at his hair. Rain lashed down, mirroring the tears that streamed down his face.“I'm sorry, Areum,” he sobbed, his voice hoarse with grief. “I'm so sorry I was too late.” He clutched a single, wilted rose, its petals stained crimson, a poignant reminder of the life that had been brutally extinguished.Noelle is a bright star who has the world at her feet, she feels no guilt about being the other woman coming between a husband and his wife. After all, Evan had been in love with her since they were teenagers. The only reason he married Ma-Ri was because his family demanded it, if he had a choice he would surely have picked her…When she gets wrongfully accused of murdering Ma-Ri, she loses everything and is sentenced to death, everyone including Evan turn against her and she is left to die a miserable death.She is reborn and this time she faces the humiliation of being the woman who is being cheated on. She is determined to end the cycle and not let the future she had seen come to pass, she decides to step out of the picture and focus on her career.In doing so, everything changes, Evan clings to her and refuses to let her go, a mysterious stranger who has been studying her also steps in and decides to fight for a chance to be with her.

It’s been 11 years since I’ve lived for others and not for me.

The moment I cried out wanting to get away from my exhausting life, I opened my eyes in the body of some Count’s 20-year-old daughter.

Since this happened, I decided to live my life freely as a single woman.

But…

“I need a lady to act as my fake wife for a certain period of time.”

“A contract marriage?”

“The term is one year. When the time is up, I’ll give you divorce with no strings attached.”

The Duke of the Empire whom I had happened to meet at a ball was hitting on me.

Turns out he’s no other than the Emperor’s beloved brother, Duke Scade!

Hold on, it’s just going to end in a clean divorce with no strings attached?

“You should also give me alimony. Give me one of the best lands of the Ducal household with 10 years’ worth of profit.”

“…..What?”

“If you don’t want to do that, then we cannot get married.”

This time I’m going to live a life taking care of the things I need first!

***

“I’ll escort you since it’s late.”

Where to? My bedroom is just around the corner.

“Tonight, I’ll do my best.”

No, I don’t need you to do that.

“Did you just look at that man?”

Excuse me, Duke, you said it’s for a limited time only, so why do you keep obsessing over me?