The Alpha's Wife, The Lycan King's Obsession 의 모든 챕터: 챕터 301 - 챕터 310

Nolan spent the following day weighing the anonymous warning carefully against their desperate need for genuine allies, turning the decision over repeatedly in his mind as he worked through the morning's council duties with only half his attention truly present. By afternoon, he had settled on a plan that balanced caution against necessity, one he hoped would satisfy both his growing suspicion and their genuine need for help."I'll meet him myself," he said, finding Gianna in their private chambers that evening, Luna nursing contentedly against her chest. "Not here at the palace, where he might gather information about our defenses or Luna's protection more easily. A neutral location, somewhere I can properly assess his sincerity without extending unnecessary trust.""I should come with you," Gianna said immediately."No," Nolan said, his voice gentle but firm. "If this warning proves accurate, if Kael, or whoever calls himself Draven in correspondence but perhaps something else entir

The flickering barrier haunted Gianna's thoughts through the remainder of that sleepless night, and by morning, exhausted but resolute, she had arrived at a decision that had been slowly building within her ever since Corwin's revelation about the mirror's necessity."We need stronger knowledge than what Corwin or Sable's heirlooms can provide," she said, gathering everyone once more in the study as dawn light spilled weakly through the windows. "Something older. More complete.""What are you suggesting?" Nolan asked, dark circles evident beneath his eyes from the exhausting night they'd all endured."There's supposedly an elder," Gianna said, turning to Sable, who had remained at the palace throughout the night assisting with the barrier's emergency reinforcement, "the last surviving member of the original Fae community that existed before the great persecution centuries ago. Someone rumored to still be alive, hidden deep in the northern mountains."Sable's expression shifted at this

The mist thickened as they climbed higher into the northern mountains, swallowing the narrow trail ahead and behind in equal measure, until Gianna could barely make out the shapes of the soldiers riding only a few horse lengths in front of her. The air carried a strange, metallic taste that settled uncomfortably at the back of her throat, and every so often, the trail beneath her horse's hooves seemed to shift subtly, as though the mountain itself resented their presence and sought quietly to turn them aside."Stay close together," Elmund called back over his shoulder, his voice carrying the strain of someone fighting to maintain composure despite the unsettling environment surrounding them. "Don't let the mist separate you from the group, not even for a moment."Thistle's voice drifted softly through the pearl necklace periodically throughout that first difficult day, offering gentle corrections whenever the party seemed to be straying from the proper path, her guidance proving essen

Elmund called for Wren and her rogue Fae immediately, and within minutes the combined party had gathered around the dwelling's rear entrance, studying the scattered evidence of struggle with grim, focused attention. Wren knelt beside the scratched doorframe, running her fingers lightly over the marks before rising with an expression carrying renewed urgency."These are recent," she said. "Hours, not days. Whoever took her moved quickly, likely heading deeper into the mountains rather than back toward our protected village.""Why would they go deeper?" Gianna asked, already moving to mount her horse, desperate to begin the pursuit before any more time slipped away."There are ruins further up," the old woman from the village said, her weathered face carrying new tension as she considered the implications. "Ancient structures, older even than our own hidden settlement. We've always avoided them, considering them cursed, places where old magic lingers too strong and too dangerous for ord

They departed the ruins at first light, the elder traveling with them now despite her evident frailty, insisting she would rather face whatever remained of her strength dedicated to helping their cause than continue her centuries-long isolation within the mountains now that the Hollow Court had finally returned. Wren and several of her rogue Fae accompanied them as well, their shared purpose against the ancient threat forging an alliance that neither party had anticipated when their journey began."I should warn you," the elder said as they made their careful descent down the treacherous mountain paths, Elmund and two soldiers helping support her weight whenever the terrain grew particularly difficult, "the memory of where other fragments might be hidden continues returning to me gradually, the longer I remain active and engaged with this purpose after so many years of quiet isolation. I believe I may recall more useful details the further we travel from this place.""That would help