All Chapters of I Became the Obsidian Lycan King’s Obsession : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Serena’s POVBy the second morning Alaric was strong enough to sit upright against the pillows, though the healers still refused to clear him for full duty. The ashen color had left his skin. His breathing had evened. The bond between us carried less pain and more frustrated energy as he tested the limits of what his body would allow. I remained at his side through every examination and every careful sip of broth, leaving only when the physician insisted I eat something myself.Gale arrived shortly after the morning tonic was administered. He moved slower than usual, his own injuries still binding his frame, but his eyes were clear and sharp. He stopped at the foot of the bed and gave Alaric a short nod of respect before turning to me.“You sent for me,” he said.I rose and guided him a few steps away from the bed so our voices would not disturb the king while the junior healer finished noting vital signs. “I need you to look into the kitchen staff,” I told him quietly. “Specifically

Serena’s POVThe evidence sat in a locked drawer in Alaric’s private study for two full days while the palace continued as if nothing had changed. Kieran still appeared at meals. He still offered polite greetings in the corridors. He still played the role of the concerned brother who had been as shocked as anyone when the king collapsed. Half the court already spoke of his steady presence during the crisis as proof of his loyalty. The other half simply preferred not to look too closely.I stood at the window of the study after the evening reports had been delivered, arms folded, watching the courtyard lights flicker below. Alaric sat behind the desk, the broken seal resting on an open ledger in front of him. Gale had just left with new instructions for the men tracing the Thornblood letter. The room felt smaller than usual.“We have enough to bring him in,” I said.Alaric did not look up immediately. “We have enough to raise questions. We do not yet have enough to withstand the storm

Serena’s POVBelinda Thornblood did not waste time with courtly delays once the formalities of the receiving hall were finished. Alaric ordered the room cleared of all but Gale, two trusted guards, and myself. The heavy doors closed with a solid sound that left the four of us alone with the woman who had ridden hard from the northeast carrying names and routes and the first clear confirmation that Liliana’s reach extended into Thornblood territory.Belinda stood with her hands folded in front of her, travel dust still clinging to the hem of her cloak. Her posture remained straight, but there was a new tightness around her eyes that had not been present when she first entered.“I will be direct,” she said. “My decision to come here was not made from pure loyalty to your throne. Caden’s world is collapsing. The alliances he counted on are withdrawing. The men who once answered his calls are choosing quieter paths. When that kind of structure falls, anyone still tied to it becomes a conv

Serena’s POVGale returned from the Royal Medical Annex just as the light began to fade over the capital. He entered the study without ceremony and placed the original hospital record on the desk beside Belinda’s copy. The verification seal of the Annex archivist was stamped clearly at the bottom of the page.“The record is genuine,” he said. “The handwriting matches the attending healer’s known samples. The date is consistent with the Annex intake logs for that month. No alterations. No substitutions. Liliana was examined in the capital fourteen months before she first presented the pregnancy claim to Caden, and the assessment states she was not pregnant at that time.”Alaric stood near the window with his arms folded. I remained seated at the desk, the two versions of the record side by side in front of me. The confirmation settled into the room with quiet force. One of Liliana’s longest-running claims had been broken by a single routine hospital note she had never expected anyone t

Caden’s POVThe holding stank of blood and boiled herbs and fear.I stood against the far wall of the low stone room with my arms folded so tightly that my shoulders ached, watching the midwife and her two assistants move around the narrow bed in constant, urgent motion. Liliana’s screams had dropped into something worse. Low, broken sounds that came with every failing contraction. Sweat soaked her hair and the collar of the shift they had put on her. Her hands twisted in the sheets until the fabric tore.“Push when I tell you,” the midwife said. Her voice stayed calm but I could see the tension in her neck. “The child is coming too early and the bleeding is not slowing. You have to help me.”Liliana’s eyes found mine across the room. For a moment the old command was still there, the same look she had used for years to pull me back into line. Then another wave of pain took her and the look shattered into raw panic.“Caden.” My name came out as a gasp. “Do something.”There was nothing