"You actually thought we would let you keep it all, Qinglan? After everything we've done for you?"
The voice cut through the quiet of the penthouse like a blade. Bai Qinglan's breath hitched as she stared at the two people she had trusted most in the world. Her younger sister, Bai Meilan, stood there with a triumphant smile, the crystal glass still in her hand—the same glass she had handed over moments ago with a loving "Cheers to our success." Beside her, Lin Hao, the man Qinglan had planned to marry next month, watched with cold, calculating eyes.
"Meilan… Hao… what did you put in the wine?" Qinglan's voice came out hoarse, her fingers tightening around the stem of her own glass as a burning pain spread through her chest. She tried to stand, but her legs buckled, sending her crashing to her knees on the marble floor. The expensive rug beneath her soaked up the spilled wine like it was absorbing her last moments.
Meilan let out a soft laugh, the kind she used to make when they were children sharing secrets. "Oh, sister, don't look so surprised. You've always been the golden child—perfect grades, perfect company takeover, perfect little life. But Father's will was clear. The shares, the properties, everything should have been split. You just… held onto it all. We're only taking what's rightfully ours."
Lin Hao stepped forward, crouching down so his face was level with hers. His cologne, the one she had bought him last birthday, filled her fading senses. "It's nothing personal, Qinglan. Business is business. You built the empire, but empires need new rulers. Consider this… early retirement."
Tears blurred her vision as the poison clawed deeper. "My own family… my own blood… I gave you everything. I protected you both when the company nearly collapsed. I—"
The words died in her throat as another wave of agony hit. Her body convulsed once, twice, then went still. The last thing she saw was Meilan's satisfied smile and Lin Hao's indifferent shrug before darkness swallowed her whole.
---
When awareness returned, it came with a jolt of cold air against bare skin and the distant sound of crackling fire. Bai Qinglan's eyes snapped open, but the world around her was wrong. Gone was the sleek penthouse with its floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city skyline. Instead, rough stone walls pressed in on every side, and the faint glow of a small hearth flickered in the corner, casting long shadows that danced like living things.
Her body felt… different. Smaller. Frailer. She lifted a trembling hand and stared at it in disbelief. The elegant manicure she had maintained for years was gone. These fingers were thin, calloused in places, and covered in dirt. Scratches marred the pale skin, and her arm—once toned from years of gym sessions and business lunches—looked like it belonged to a malnourished teenager.
"What… what is this?" she whispered, her voice cracking. The words came out in a language she had never spoken before, yet it felt natural on her tongue. Memories flooded in—fragmented, chaotic. A life that was not hers. An orphaned girl in a remote village. No parents. No name that anyone cared to remember. Just a weak human girl left to fend for herself in a world where humans were rare… and dangerous to be.
She pushed herself up on shaky elbows, wincing at the ache in every muscle. The air smelled of smoke, wet earth, and something wild—animal musk mixed with herbs. Outside the cave entrance, she could hear low voices and the occasional deep growl that sent chills racing down her spine. This was not Earth. This was not her world.
From the scattered memories now merging with her own, she pieced it together. The Beast Realm. A primitive land where powerful beastmen shifted between human forms and massive animal shapes—wolves the size of horses, leopards with claws like daggers, pythons that could crush boulders. Females were incredibly scarce here, worshipped like goddesses by some tribes and fought over like prizes by others. Humans like the body she now inhabited were even rarer, often seen as fragile prey or potential mates to be protected at all costs.
"I died," she murmured, the realization hitting her like a second dagger. "Betrayed by my own sister and fiancé… and now I'm here. Reborn as… this." A bitter laugh escaped her lips, quickly stifled when she heard footsteps approaching the cave.
An elderly voice called out gently from outside. "Little one? Are you awake? I brought some broth. You've been feverish for days since we found you by the river."
Bai Qinglan froze. The voice belonged to an old man—Elder Shen, according to the borrowed memories. He had taken her in when the village discovered the half-drowned human girl with no tribe and no strength. Kind, but cautious. In this world, weakness could get you killed… or worse, turned into someone's property.
She quickly scanned the small cave. A simple stone bed covered in rough furs. A few clay pots near the fire. No modern comforts, no electricity, no escape. Her modern knowledge—business strategies, survival hacks from books she had read in her past life—felt like the only weapon she had left. She had to hide who she really was. Revealing her intelligence, her memories, or the strange pull she already felt toward something she couldn't name yet… it would mark her as different. Dangerous.
"I'm… I'm awake," she called back, forcing her voice to sound weak and grateful. She pulled the fur blanket tighter around her thin frame and sat up slowly, heart pounding. The mate bond—whatever that meant in this savage land—had already begun to stir faintly in her chest, like a distant drumbeat calling to someone powerful. Someone dangerous.
Elder Shen entered, carrying a steaming bowl. His weathered face crinkled into a smile, but his eyes held the sharp watchfulness of someone who had survived many seasons in the Beast Realm. "Good, good. Eat slowly, child. The beastmen patrols will be passing through soon. We must keep you hidden until you're stronger. A human girl like you… you're a treasure here. And treasures attract wolves."
Bai Qinglan accepted the bowl with trembling hands, the warm liquid burning her throat as she sipped. Outside, a distant roar echoed through the forest—deep, commanding, the sound of a predator at the top of the food chain.
She didn't know it yet, but that roar belonged to Helian Xuan, the ruthless Alpha King of the Wolf Clan. And somewhere in the shadows of her new fate, their secret bond had already begun to awaken.
For now, she was just a frail orphan girl in a cave. But Bai Qinglan—reborn, betrayed, and burning with quiet fury—vowed silently that this world would not break her the way her old one had.
She would survive. She would hide her strength. And one day… she would make sure no one ever betrayed her again.
The fire crackled louder as night fell over the savage Beast Realm, and somewhere in the darkness, golden wolf eyes turned toward the village, drawn by a scent they could not yet name.