LOGINCHAPTER 82DRAKEN’S POVThe maps on my table blurred as I rubbed the bridge of my nose, Fenris drawing bored lines with his claws behind my ribs. Thorne stood opposite me, his fingers turning a security report over and over, his face hardened into his usual unreadable grimness.The door slammed violently against the stone wall.A vanguard warrior burst into the room, his breath coming in ragged gasps, his armor splattered with fresh slush. “Your Majesty!” he choked out, dropping to one knee before the table. “The Luna... she bypassed the northern checkpoint. She has left the palace grounds alone on foot.”I was already moving before the warrior could finish the sentence. The chair crashed backward behind me as I vaulted over the table with a flash. Fenris let out a feral, bloodthirsty roar in my mind, his possessive territorial instincts ripping through my focus until my vision tinged with deep gold.Thorne didn't ask questions. He grabbed his heavy sword from the rack and fell into
CHAPTER 81 AVA’S POVI sat by the window of my private sitting room, my fingers tracing the cold glass, staring at the fog rolling over the northern battlements. I wasn't in bed anymore, despite the healers' protests. The confinement was driving me mad. Maya moved quietly through the room, adjusting a vase of fresh winter orchids on the mantelpiece, her scent anxious and protective.The oak doors were slightly open to let in the heat from the corridor hearth. That was how I heard them.Two young palace maids stopped just outside the threshold, their footsteps halting, their voices dropping into rapid clicks. They thought the crackle of the wood covered their words. They forgot my Southern ears could track a rabbit through thick brush.“They say the Luna rejected the King,” the first one whispered, the words dropping like a metal into the silence. “They say she won't let him touch her.”The second one chimed in immediately, her tone slick with fear and excitement. “They say the Moon
CHAPTER 80 DRAKEN’S POVThe high stone pillars of the Grand Audience Hall offered no warmth against the morning chill. I sat on the throne, my posture impassive, listening to a low-ranking lord from the western valley drone on about territory border adjustments. On the surface, the room was as structured and orderly as any other morning. Beneath all the noise the air felt thick. Heavy.I didn't shift my position, but my eyes drifted across the crowded hall. The high nobles weren't focused on the petitioner. They stood in small, tight clusters, their shoulders hunched, lips moving in rapid motion. Every time my gaze swerved toward a specific group, the murmurs vanished instantly. They replaced their whispers with bows and sudden interest in the stone floor.Deep behind my ribs, Fenris gave a vicious rumble. Something is wrong.My jaw clenched. The western lord finished his speech, bowed low, and retreated into the crowd. Before the herald could announce the next name, a visiting lord
CHAPTER 79MORGANA’S POVThe doors of the Ladies' Council Chamber swung open to a room stripped of its usual social vanity. Today was not an afternoon for tea or petty gossip; it was the monthly administrative council, an assembly designed to maintain the fragile infrastructure of the Northern territories. As noblewomen representing the highest houses, our agenda was dense and demanding. We were here to review the grain supplies for the orphan houses across the frozen sectors, authorize the distribution of winter relief to the widows of fallen warriors, and approve immediate funds for midwives before the spring births began.Furthermore, we needed to oversee the repairs to the village shrines shattered during the Blood Oath attack and assign noblewomen to manage upcoming charitable visits. These were the unglamorous, heavy duties traditionally handled by the Luna.I arrived first, settling into my high-backed chair, my fingers tracing the cushions. Elena followed shortly after, her ex
CHAPTER 78 MADAME LIRA’S POV I refused to let the emptiness drag me under. I didn't wait for the morning light, and I didn't give my aching bones an hour to recover from the backlash of the shattered connection. With a desperate resolve, my trembling fingers struck the flint over and over until the sparks caught the wicks of the three ritual candles once more. “Sisters!”, I snarled into the quiet, my magic bleeding into the water with urgency. “Mira! Nira! Answer me!” The surface churned. The spirits of my sisters flickered back into the space, their auras heavily strained by the abrupt recall. They didn't voice a single word of complaint about the physical toll; the terror of what had been cut off kept everyone's mind focused on the blade. “The connection is highly unstable, Lira,” Nira warned hurriedly, her outline vibrating within the cloud. “Speak quickly before the thread snaps permanently.” “Mira, the name,” I demanded, stepping directly against the stone altar. “You said yo
CHAPTER 77MADAME LIRA’S POVAcross the mental link, the sightless gazes of Nira and Mira remained fixed on my position.“Describe it, Lira,” Nira commanded softly, “Do not leave a single shard out. Every detail matters when the ash wakes up.”I kept my palms pressed flat against the bowl, staring down into the dark water as I forced my mind back to the fragments. “It begins with the snow,” I whispered, my chest tightening, “Then the roaring, fire consuming the manor. The hunting howls of the wolves in the mist, the screaming of the woman on the bridge, and finally... the single crimson pool where the broken silver moon lies.”“No,” Mira interrupted, her voice cutting through the smoke.I tilted my head, my sightless eyes narrowing in the dark. “Mira?”“Not the symbols, Lira,” Mira corrected, “We already know what the objects are. We want the order. Exactly which fragment struck your consciousness first?” The demand left a heavy silence in the room. It was a question designed to te
CHAPTER 5ShadowsAVA'S POV. I felt a hand like iron wrap around my ankle. Before I could fall, I was pulled backward. Draken had flown up the ivy. He caught me mid-air as I tumbled from the wall. his body shielding mine as we slammed into the grass at the foot of the wall. He rolled, taking most
CHAPTER 4The court of vultures. AVA'S POV.Two days had passed since I almost stabbed him with that silver letter opener. The King’s suite felt like a cage. Draken hadn’t touched me since that night. He slept in the armchair by the window, eyes open every time I woke up, gone by the time I preten
CHAPTER 3 AVA'S POV As we walked down the dim hallway of the Royal wing, the shadow at the far end finally stepped out into the light. It was a man. And he looked terrifyingly similar to Draken. He possessed the same towering frame and broad, built shoulders. But his features were softer, framed
CHAPTER 2 AVA'S POV He sunk his fang deep down my neck and the mark was set. A wave of pain crashed through me as the bond took hold, and my knees felt weak. When he finally pulled back, the weight of the situation settled in. "I don’t want this," I gasped, tears slipping down my cheeks. "I don’t







