Chapter 80. Departure for Ironshade

Celeste’s POV

Sia’s tale was a tragedy unlike any I’ve ever heard; it remains a marvel how she still finds reasons to smile among us. After a few quiet moments, she prepared to share the last, most painful part of her story—the fate of her child.

When she fled the ruins of the once-mighty Vulnus pack, Sia was already certain the divine retribution that had destroyed her clan had touched her baby as well. Hurt and alone, she discovered a hidden cave far from any danger. There, exhausted and bleeding, she was forced to give birth with no one to help her.

The newborn was frail, its skin marked by strange white patches. Too weak to cry, the child’s gender remained a mystery to Sia, who was herself battling exhaustion and losing too much blood to think clearly. She did her best, nursing for nearly an hour to keep the infant alive—and then, mercifully or not, she slipped into unconsciousness.

Waking up later, Sia realized it had been the gravest mistake of