Chapter 4

Aurelie lowered her head, letting just the right amount of tremor into her voice.

"I'm blind. I can't even tell what color my shoes are. I can't see if someone's sticking their tongue out at me or smiling."

Her shoulders twitched, face pale, as if she might collapse any second.

—The tears fell at precisely the right moment.

"I trust Matthew completely. He's my fiancé, soon to be my husband—he couldn't possibly lie to me, right? That's how much I trusted him, Mr. Reynolds." Her voice broke, barely able to continue.

Reynolds frowned, sensing accusation in her words.

"Matthew said he'd take me to register our marriage, and now I, a blind woman, have married the wrong person." Aurelie's shoulders shook again. "I followed Matthew everywhere, terrified of getting lost or falling. I depended on him completely. How could this have happened..."

She burst into tears at just the right moment, sobs so heart-wrenching they'd evoke pity from anyone who didn't know the truth. Yet beneath her lowered lashes, her gaze remained unusually clear—this performance had only just begun.

"Mr. Reynolds, I think this is all Aurelie's fault," Fiora said viciously. "Even if she's blind, she should be able to tell the difference between Matthew and the man she married."

"Exactly!" Caroline cut in, patting Aurelie's head lightly—gently, not wanting to appear too harsh in front of Reynolds. "You made me lose face. You planned this all along, didn't you?"

"Are you having an affair behind Matthew's back?" Fiora pressed, cold smile in place. "You've been distant with him lately—I've been watching."

"I think you stopped loving Matthew long ago and you're just using your blindness as an excuse to manipulate him," Caroline pressed, cornering Aurelie.

Aurelie's hands clenched into fists, fingertips nearly breaking skin. Her face still wore that fragile, broken expression, tear tracks still wet at the corners of her eyes, but her mind raced with calculations.

Perfect. Keep going. Say as much as you want. Ideally, everyone should hear you.

She lowered her head, using her disheveled hair to subtly hide the barely suppressed smile on her lips.

"Aurelie, you always use your blindness to blame others—how manipulative!" Caroline said sharply.

"Mom, remember when I had that allergic reaction? She said the seasoning in the mashed potatoes was wrong," Fiora embellished. "She's blind, but she pretended to know everything, and I ended up in the hospital!"

Onlookers whispered among themselves, debating whether Aurelie really was as Fiora and Caroline described.

"She might just be pretending to be blind and weak."

"But I heard she's been abused since going blind. Who knows? Maybe she was framed this time too."

"Poor girl, but this is strange—how could she not recognize her lover? Even with eyes closed, she should recognize him by scent."

"Shh, don't you know? She doesn't have the wolf instinct inside her. I guess that makes her completely useless."

The whispers pierced Aurelie's ears like needles. She pinched her thigh hard, suppressing every urge to shut them up.

"Shut up! Everyone, shut up!"

Reynolds' voice suddenly boomed, Alpha rage spreading with a rich pine scent. No one dared speak again—the room went so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Matthew! Tell me what happened. Don't hide anything!"

Matthew had never seen his father this angry. An only child, always pampered, he felt like ice water had been thrown over him. But he was tired of paying the price for Aurelie's existence and resolved to stop hiding his feelings.

He trembled but kept his voice loud: "I've never loved Aurelie. All these years, I've only loved Fiora and only wanted to marry her. She's a beautiful and intelligent beta warrior—we're a perfect match."

Reynolds was stunned: "You!"

Matthew pointed at Aurelie: "Dad, look at her. A lowly omega without even a wolf spirit, and blind on top of that. What makes her worthy of me?"

Aurelie's shoulders twitched slightly—a reaction that only made Matthew more smug, allowing him to vent his pent-up emotions.

"No one wants a lowly omega like Aurelie, especially since she's blind and will only burden any man. Didn't marrying her off to the Keegan son actually help her? She should thank me!" He leaned closer to Reynolds, lowering his voice. "Giving this useless thing to the Keegan family is actually good for us, isn't it?"

Reynolds looked at his son with an almost unfamiliar gaze, wanting nothing more than to teach him a lesson on the spot. But Matthew wasn't finished—he raised his chin, looked around, and said, "Dad, if you want to be a good person and force me to sacrifice my feelings for Fiora by marrying her to compensate for saving me in that accident, it's pointless—she doesn't deserve that kind of compensation. I can donate my cornea if necessary, but I'll never marry her!"

Guests started talking again, questioning Matthew's arrogance.

"That's enough."

A deep reprimand came from the outer edge of the crowd. Without being raised, the voice instantly silenced the entire banquet hall.

Guests turned their heads in unison, and a hushed gasp rose from the crowd.

"That's... Vincent from the Keegan family?"

"Good god, what's the Damon family's archenemy doing here?"

"I heard their perfume business has been booming for the past decade."

Reynolds' anger was instantly replaced by a stiff smile. He strode forward, tone forcedly warm: "Keegan, what a rare guest. Such trouble to have you come all this way for a family gathering."

"I just happened to be passing by and overheard something," Vincent said, shifting his gaze from Reynolds to Matthew, tone almost indifferent. "I have no interest in the Damon family's business, but I didn't like what young master Matthew just said. Stop calling her useless. A useless woman couldn't have endured everything she's been through. A useless woman couldn't possibly still be standing here after being treated like this. Matthew, this young woman saved your life, and you repay that kindness in public like this."

The words were like knives, stabbing both Matthew and Reynolds—everyone understood this was a direct attack on the Damon family for failing to raise their son properly, right in front of their rivals.

Matthew's neck turned red. He wanted to argue but didn't dare, could only glare at Vincent resentfully.

Reynolds forced a smile, trying to smooth things over: "Keegan, this is a private family matter, there's no need—"

"I know," Vincent interrupted, tone still calm, but he didn't move—didn't turn away as others expected. Instead, he walked straight to Aurelie's side and stopped in a position that was just right to shield her.

A murmur of surprise rippled through the room again. The sight of Alpha, head of two top perfume houses, standing beside the blind omega being ridiculed by the entire audience, was shrouded in mystery.

Aurelie could smell the mingled scent of pine and cedar on him, several times clearer than when separated by the room full of guests. She turned her head slightly toward the scent and whispered in a voice barely audible except to those with exceptional hearing in close proximity:

"Stay with me."

Her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible, yet every word came crystal clear to Vincent. He smiled slightly, but instead of answering, he subtly took another half-step closer to her.

Gary practically rushed over, voice low and almost pleading: "Alpha Vin, what are you doing—didn't you just say you were only watching the show?"

"Plans changed," Vincent said, only these few words. "My little wife needs me, so here I am."

Taking advantage of the momentary chaos, Aurelie slowly straightened up and wiped tears from her face. "Mr. Reynolds," her voice was soft but clear enough to reach everyone's ears, "stop blaming Matthew. What he said is true—I should have been more rational."

Matthew sneered, "You heard that, didn't you? She admitted I was right. Tsk, Aurelie, you should have woken up long ago."

"Yes, Matthew," Aurelie turned to him, tone calm to the point of gentleness, "I'm sorry you felt I was a burden. I should have realized long ago who you truly loved, shouldn't I?"

She turned to Reynolds: "Mr. Reynolds, I think I'll choose to compromise and withdraw from this marriage, so Matthew and Fiora can be together."

Reynolds was startled: "Aurelie, you don't need to do that."

"Why not, Dad?" Matthew demanded loudly. "Why are you stopping—"

"Matthew," Aurelie suddenly raised her voice, each word ringing clearly in everyone's ears, "in that car accident, I saved you—Mr. Reynolds' only son. I traded my eyes for your life. Now you don't want me anymore—fine, I'll back off. But there's one thing you owe me, and you must repay it."

She paused, then her voice suddenly rose: "Give me back my eyesight."

The room fell silent—everyone was stunned. Even Matthew and Reynolds were speechless for a moment.

Whispers quickly arose from the crowd:

"Is what she said true? Have you seen it on Instagram?"

"A friend forwarded this to me last year, and it seems true! It wouldn't be right not to pay this debt."

"I see... no wonder she went blind."

Public opinion shifted quietly after that one sentence.

Aurelie smiled sweetly: "To allow you two to be together, I agree to step aside. But you must first restore my eyesight—didn't you say you could?"

Reynolds snapped out of his shock and realized he was on the verge of a dangerous situation—Vincent was still there, and everyone in the room was watching. He had no way out.

He turned around abruptly and kicked Matthew hard, knocking him to the ground.

Reynolds was furious at his son's foolishness—even a longtime rival could see Aurelie was no ordinary woman, yet he as the father had allowed Matthew to make this scene and publicly confirm the debt.

To outsiders, Aurelie—a weak omega without any wolf nature and blind—seemed to be the one who benefited from the marriage: Matthew was handsome, rich, from a prestigious family, and many women longed to marry him, yet she "won" him.

But no one knew what Reynolds had been planning from the very beginning was actually the formula for the "Moonlight Illusion" perfume.

That was Damon Corporation's biggest research project—high-end perfume that could induce pleasurable hallucinations. The project stalled for years without breakthroughs and was eventually shelved, simply because the formula happened to fall into Aurelie's hands. Reynolds could never understand how something so important could be in the hands of a blind and unknown girl. Even if she became a werewolf, it would be useless, because she had no ability to summon the wolf within her.

Matthew winced in pain, glaring at his father, bewildered and ashamed at being punished for no reason. "Dad, what are you doing?"

Reynolds grabbed his arm and dragged him to a corner of the room.

"You idiot! Why would you hand over the goose that lays golden eggs to your rival, right in front of Vincent?"

"Dad, what do you mean?"

"The recipe for Moonlight Illusion, you idiot! We need that blind omega to make it!"

Matthew was stunned. He'd never heard of this before, but didn't dare question his father's judgment in the perfume business. "Aurelie has the formula for that perfume? How is that possible?"

"Enough nonsense," Reynolds gritted his teeth, "what you just did was the stupidest thing you've ever done."

"My god, Alpha Matthew, you've botched everything," Bick whispered inside him. "You personally handed over the family's greatest treasure to the Keegan family—our greatest rival."

"Shut up, don't say another word," Reynolds hissed.

He turned to Aurelie, took her hand, and his tone suddenly softened. "Aurelie, darling, Matthew did something foolish, and I apologize on his behalf. You know he's always like this, right? Ultimately, from the very beginning, I only wanted you to be the Damon family's daughter-in-law—you'll bring good fortune to the direwolves, and we'll take good care of you."

Aurelie smiled softly. She knew what Reynolds wanted, and she knew what the consequences would be if she complied.

"Darling, I'll fix the problem with the marriage certificate and make sure you retain your status as Moon Goddess. However, I hope you won't mind handing me the recipe for 'Moonlight Illusion'—after all, you're now the Damon family's daughter-in-law, so it's only right you help your father-in-law, right?" Reynolds' voice was full of coaxing.

"Mr. Damon," Vincent's voice interjected casually from the side, "this young woman isn't even officially married yet—it's a bit too early to ask for this 'favor.'"

Reynolds' smile froze for a moment.

"Mr. Reynolds, I simply can't bear to tear apart two hearts that love each other so much," Aurelie's voice calmed. "They're even planning their wedding. Rather than wait until I'm officially your daughter-in-law and then have them do something behind my back that disgraces the Damon family, I'd rather bless Matthew and Fiora now—they were meant to be together."

A few snickers came from among the guests, and both Matthew and Fiora seemed a little uneasy.

"Besides, getting a marriage certificate from the wrong person will only cause trouble at the civil registry office," Aurelie continued. "It's better to let things take their course and have Matthew and Fiora register as soon as possible."

Reynolds' expression tensed. "But, Aurelie, I don't want to—"

"Mr. Reynolds, do you really need the recipe for 'Moonlight Illusion'?"

Reynolds swallowed hard. Perhaps even if Aurelie didn't marry Matthew, she'd still give him the formula—besides, Vincent was standing right there, so he couldn't openly settle scores.

"Yes... yes, Aurelie, I really need that recipe," Reynolds said hopefully. "Can you give it to me?"

Aurelie smiled slightly and nodded. "Of course, why not?"