All Chapters of MOON MARKED BY THE LYCAN KING: Chapter 121 - Chapter 130

SKYE’S POV The winter market opened the next morning. Nighthaven had always held winter markets, but this year the fortress felt transformed. The outer courtyard became a maze of lanterns, snow-dusted awnings, and the mingled scents of cinnamon, pine, smoked fish, hot cider, and fresh bread. Merchants from every region filled the square. Merrow goods had not yet arrived, yet people were already asking which stall would sell island sweets. Optimism, I was learning, often arrived before evidence. Eryx and I tried to walk the market quietly. We failed within thirty seconds. A baker pressed sweet rolls into our hands. A child demanded judgment in a snowball dispute. An elderly cooper insisted we taste his winter cider “for diplomatic reasons.” By the time we reached the bridge, I was carrying bread, apples, and a carved wooden lantern someone had simply placed in my hands and disappeared before I could protest. “This is becoming a problem,” I said. Eryx looked at his own colle

SKYE’S POV Merrow stayed for seven days. That, more than anything, told me the visit was serious. Delegations that came only to negotiate arrived with schedules. This one arrived with questions. On the second morning, I found Councilor Maelin standing alone in the upper gallery overlooking the school courtyard. Children were crossing the snow below, lanterns swinging from their gloved hands despite the daylight. “They carry them even when the sun is out,” she observed. “It started during the storms,” I said. “Now they’ve decided the lanterns belong to the road, not the weather.” Maelin watched the children for a moment longer. “In Merrow, traditions usually begin with elders.” “And here?” I smiled faintly. “Lately they seem to begin with children and spread outward.” That earned a quiet laugh. We walked the gallery together in companionable silence. I had expected Maelin to be distant, perhaps severe. Instead, she reminded me of Mara from Windmere—someone who had liv

SKYE’S POV The first Merrow lanterns crossed the sea six days later. The harbor bells in Seabreak rang at dawn, and by noon a messenger reached Nighthaven with snow still clinging to his cloak. I was in the library with Tomas when he arrived. “From Seabreak, Your Majesty.” The letter smelled faintly of salt even after the long ride. I opened it carefully. Inside was a single page written in Nerys’s sharp, impatient hand. **Three Merrow ships entered the harbor at first light. They carried winter grain, sailcloth, medicine, and two hundred carved lanterns for the Lantern Road. Also, Tempest escaped for fourteen minutes and stole a fish from the harbor master. The alliance remains intact despite this setback.** I laughed so suddenly that Tomas looked up from his books. “Good news?” “Very good news.” I handed him the letter. He read it, smiling at the final line. “Diplomacy is improving.” The larger meaning settled over me a heartbeat later. Merrow had not

SKYE’S POV The first green appeared along the river five days later. Not leaves. Just a thin haze of color where the willows bent over the water. Winter was loosening its grip one branch at a time. I noticed it while crossing the bridge at dawn. The air smelled different too—wet earth instead of snow, thawing moss instead of cedar smoke. Spring was coming. And with it, movement. The roads grew busier every day. Wagons rattled across the bridge from sunrise until long after dark. Merrow sailors learned to curse at mainland mud with impressive creativity. Ashford students arrived carrying stacks of copied books, and Greenmere farmers brought early seedlings wrapped in damp cloth. Nighthaven felt less like a fortress and more like a crossroads. I was beginning to love that. --- The trouble started at noon. Not with a storm. With silence. A rider from the northern road arrived pale and breathless. “Your Majesty,” he said, bowing quickly. “The Lantern Rest has gone dark.”

SKYE’S POV Spring arrived all at once. One morning I woke to birds. Not the occasional winter call, but a full chorus pouring through the open shutters. The air smelled of wet earth and growing things. Snow still clung to the highest shadows, but the valley below Nighthaven had turned green overnight. After months of white and silver, the color felt almost shocking. I stood at the window for a long moment, simply looking. Meltwater flashed in the channels. Smoke rose from the lower village. And along the eastern road, I could see lanterns still hanging from their posts, pale gold in the morning light. They had remained through winter. Now they would remain through spring as well. Eryx appeared behind me, still tying the laces of his shirt. “You’re smiling at the road again.” “It keeps giving me reasons.” He followed my gaze. “That’s either inspiring or concerning.” “Both.” --- The first spring ships from Merrow were due within the week, and Nighthaven had become a p