Reborn as the Ruthless Regent's Luna

Seraphina POV:

The sharp, agonizing crack of shattering porcelain jerked me awake from the cold fog of rebirth. The copper scent of spilled blood filled my nose, and a strange, ancient power stirred deep within my body.

My eyes snapped open, taking in the grand parlor of the Beaumont Manor. The timeline had reset. I was back.

This was the room where my nightmare had begun. This was also the place where my first life had ended.

My mother's favorite antique vase lay in a thousand pieces at my feet.

Faye Beaumont, my sweet, adopted "sister," was crumpled on the floor, clutching her wrist. A few delicate drops of blood stained the white lace of her dress. Her wide, doe-like eyes filled with tears as she looked at me in supposed terror.

"Seraphina... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to break it. I just wanted to help you wipe the dust off your skirt..." she sobbed.

Her voice was just loud enough for every servant in the main hall to hear.

I watched her performance with ice in my veins. In my first life, I was a naive girl who fell for these pathetic little traps, letting my family vilify me until they traded me away to a terrible fate. I trusted the people who should have protected me, believed every lie they told me, and paid for it with my life.

But now, I remembered everything.

Every betrayal. Every humiliation. Every moment when Faye had smiled while pushing me toward destruction.

Yet this time, something was different.

When my life ended, the bloodline that had slept inside me for years was finally awakened. Perhaps death had broken the seal that had suppressed the ancient white wolf blood within me, or perhaps the hatred and regret I carried from my first life had finally called forth the power hidden in my veins.

I didn't know the reason yet.

But I knew one thing.

The girl standing before Faye was no longer the timid Seraphina who would lower her head and accept their cruelty.

"You vicious woman!" a roar came from the doorway.

My second brother, Vincent Beaumont-a brash twenty-two-year-old Alpha warrior whose hot temper always blinded him to the truth-charged into the room like an enraged bull.

He didn't even glance at me. He rushed straight to Faye's side, gently helping her up and inspecting her wrist, his eyes burning with a mixture of pity and fury.

"It's you again! Seraphina! Can't you just leave Faye alone?" Vincent spun around, his amber eyes glaring at me as if I were his sworn enemy.

The surrounding servants lowered their heads, but I could feel their fearful glances and hear their hushed whispers. They were all condemning me without a word.

I didn't panic and try to defend myself like I used to. I just stood there silently, feeling the unfamiliar strength quietly flowing through my body.

My calmness seemed to infuriate him even more. "Are you deaf? Apologize to Faye! On your knees!" he bellowed, spit flying from his mouth.

Behind him, Faye timidly tugged at his sleeve. "Vincent, forget it, it's not her fault. It was my own clumsiness..."

The more she said that, the hotter his anger burned.

Kneel? Me? After everything they had done to me in my previous life, after they had sacrificed me for Faye's happiness and left me to die? Kneel to this manipulative little actress? What a joke.

I finally moved. Not to my knees, but one step forward. I looked directly into Vincent's eyes, a cold, unfamiliar smile playing on my lips.

"You want me to kneel to her?"

My voice was quiet, but it carried a playful, mocking tone that echoed through the silent hall.

Vincent was taken aback by my reaction for a second, then his anger surged again. "What is this attitude! Faye is the treasure of this family. You hurt her, and you should beg for her forgiveness!"

"Oh? The treasure of your family?" I chuckled softly. My eyes swept over the cowering servants, finally landing on Faye's pale face.

"I'd like to ask," I said, enunciating each word clearly, "why should I, Seraphina Beaumont, the true-born daughter whose name is on the family registry, who carries the blood of Alphas, kneel to an adopted girl from who knows where?"

A dead silence fell over the hall. Even Faye's sobbing stopped.

Everyone stared at me in shock, including Vincent. They were used to my weakness and obedience. They had never imagined I would say something so defiant.

"Or has the house of Beaumont changed its rules?" I continued. "A replacement's status is now higher than the true heir's?"

"What... what nonsense are you spouting!" Vincent's face turned a deep shade of red. He seemed to want to argue but couldn't find the words.

Faye's body began to tremble, not from fear, but from the panic of her lies being exposed.

I stared at her coldly, adding more pressure. "You all brought me back after I was switched at birth, not to reunite with your real daughter, but to be a stepping stone and a punching bag for your beloved adopted one, isn't that right?"

The words hit them like a thunderclap. It was a secret everyone in the family knew but never dared to speak aloud.

For the first time, in front of everyone, I ripped that flimsy veil of politeness to shreds.

Vincent's lips quivered as he pointed a finger at me. "You... you're insane!"

"Insane?" I laughed, a bright, brilliant laugh. "No. I've just woken up."

I ignored them and turned my gaze to the broken shards of the vase, specifically to a sharp piece stained with Faye's blood.

"It's just a vase, hardly worth all this drama," I said lightly. "But the acting was decent. Just remember to try something new next time."

I lifted my head, my gaze traveling over a stunned Vincent to land directly on the pale face of Faye behind him.

"Because starting today," my voice was a cold promise, "I'm no longer acting in your old script."