"So you're saying the two of you knew each other?" Kai asked. Right now, Midwak was just sitting up, still his backside was on the floor, but Kai was no longer right on top of him ready to strike at any moment. At some point as Midwak was telling his story, Kai could tell that there was sincerity in his voice. Maybe it was because big events had happened in Kai's own life, he was more so able to tell when Midwak was telling the truth, and to be honest, it was the first time that Kai had ever heard Midwak even speak so softly. "Ha, we didn't just know each other, it was a long-term civil partnership. We lived under the same roof, we cared for each other, you could say that the two of us were near enough married, minus the official documentation. She was everything to me at the time, and I was hers," Midwak explained. "And that's why you decided to believe her when she spoke to you, because of the history you two had together. I know people get blinded by love, and when it's someone that important to you, you want to believe everything they say…" Kai was thinking back to his past, and how many times his mother had forgiven those around them, thinking that they would change. "It's complicated," Midwak said. "It's complicated." —— It felt like a normal day between Midwak and Ylva as they enjoyed their time together. Midwak was still performing well in his trials and was getting stronger by the day. There was talk that Ruin City might be attacked soon by a gang nearby. And, if Midwak was chosen, it was time for him to show what he needed. As the two were getting ready, a knock at the door was heard. Midwak had gone to open it and recognized the man. It was one of the older Werewolves that assisted Garlark with his duties. They assessed, analyzed, and gathered everyone when needed. As Werewolves were starting to live further and wider among Ruin City, they needed more of a structure to gather those who were part of the pack. "Oh, is there something going on today?" Midwak asked. "There is, but for today Lupus has said that you can rest," the man stated. "Today, all of the women are being brought in for an assessment." All Werewolves underwent training, male or female, so it wasn't out of the blue, but the men were certainly trained more. This was because even in the pack, they felt like the women's lives held more value in a particular situation. It was the idea of creating a truer bloodline of Werewolves that Lupus and Garlark had. Rather than creating Werewolves that were turned. "It will be okay," Ylva said. "You know I'm strong, we both are, that's why we were attracted to each other. I'll be fine, I'll come back with half the injuries compared to you." —— All of the women Werewolves had been gathered at the outer Ruins. They looked at each other in confusion as all thirty of them were there. The reason being, it was quite rare for all of them to be called on the same day. Usually, there was half of them, and it allowed the assessors to focus, or give them more individual tips. On top of that, it was rare for Lupus to be there himself, and now all of them could see him standing there with his hands behind his back, and an intimidating smile. "Today is an important task for you all. It might be shocking what I'm going to ask you to do, but I truly need you to try your best without fail. All of you will be going against each other. You will not be matched up in pairs, this isn't a tournament-style bout, but I want you to imagine this is a real-world fight. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮 "You are to go against each other until there is only one person left standing. If you fall to the ground and wish to not get back up, then that is fine, it just means that's all you would have amounted to, but I promise that the reward will be more than worth it." Due to the sudden announcement, it was all very surprising to the women. It was a lot to take in, and before they knew it, Lupus had given the signal. "Begin." Right away, in front of Ylva's face she saw a claw mark head straight for her. She leaned back to avoid the strike. "Are we really fighting each other like this… I said that I would get back to Midwak with no marks on my face." Ylva looked at the scene and nearly everyone was fighting. "I'm afraid, I might not be able to keep that promise." The fighting continued, with Werewolves getting knocked down, scratched, stabbed, and badly injured. Some of them not being able to take the pain anymore stayed on the ground, no longer being able to fight. The one thankful thing was that none of them had gotten killed, but it wasn't meant to be that type of fight in the first place. At times there were those that were too injured but tried to get up, and Lupus had told them to stay down. In the end, out of all of them, there was only one left standing, bloody, cut up, and injured and that was Ylva. "Impressive, very impressive. It seems you are the strongest woman in this entire pack," Lupus claimed. Catching her breath, Ylva stood straight. "What is your name?" Lupus asked. "Ylva," she replied. "Ylva, a unique name. I like it. Very well, Ylva, your reward for winning this bout is you will be selected as my Luna wolf." **** For updates for MWS and future works, please follow me on my social media below. Instagram: Jksmanga *Patreon: jksmanga When news of MVS, MWS or any other series comes out, you will be able to see it there first, and you can reach out to me. If I'm not too busy, I tend to reply.