All Chapters of Reborn as Betrayed Luna : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

Livia’s POVThe noise of the dining hall instantly blurred into background noise.My heart thudded hard against my ribs. I looked up at Asher, trying to read the brutal, controlled anger written into every line of his face. He didn't drop the parchment. He gripped it so tightly his knuckles turned white, the rough edge of the paper crumpling in his fist.Across the table, Grand Oracle Vane leaned forward slightly. His thin, pale fingers remained linked over his silver pendant, his face a perfect mask of quiet, pious concern."Is there trouble on the southern road, Heir Blackwood?" Vane asked, his papery voice cutting cleanly through the murmur of the hall. "Your rider looks... distressed."Asher didn't look at Vane. He didn't give him the satisfaction of a reaction. With slow, terrifying control, Asher slid the folded dispatch inside his coat, his golden eyes fixing entirely on me."A minor border dispute," Asher said smoothly, his tone flat, cold, and entirely devoid of emotion. "Not

Livia’s POVThe morning of the Moon Blessing didn't start with sunlight. A thick, icy fog rolled off the northern peaks, clinging to the stone walls of the pack like grease.By eight o'clock, my father was sitting in his high-backed chair in the main reception hall. His face color was still poor, but the glassy, vacant look in his eyes was gone. The clean tea Torin had substituted was doing its job, sluggishly, but surely."Livia," Father said as I stepped into the hall, adjusting the heavy silver brooch at his collar. His hands were steady, though his knuckles looked raw. "The Grand Oracle requested a private audience before we marched to the temple.""Alone?" I asked, stopping a few feet from his chair."He asked for you as well," Father said, leaning his cane against his knee. "He claims he wants to review the lineage records to ensure the Blessing flows correctly through the Hartwell bloodline."My jaw set. Vane was isolating us before we even reached the sacred ground.Before I c

Livia’s POVThe sharp ring of steel clearing scabbards echoed through the vaulted arches of the temple, replacing the priest’s solemn chant with the metallic rasp of an impending execution.Kaelen didn't draw his sword, but two of his northern captains took two long strides down the dais steps, their heavy leather coats swinging back to reveal bare blades. The visiting pack Alphas in the pews surged backward, chairs scraping hard against stone as panic rippled through the gallery."Hold!" Alpha Kaelen’s voice barked over the rising din, smooth and thin. He raised a gloved hand, holding his men back just an arm's length from Torin's warriors. His grey eyes flicked from Asher’s drawn broadsword to the shattered floorboards of the catacomb latch. "Heir Blackwood... you just drew weapons on sacred ground during a Moon Blessing Rites. That is an act of war against the priesthood.""Then call it war, Kaelen," Asher replied, his voice dropping into a guttural, terrifying tone that vibrated

Livia’s POVThe silence that hit the pack was heavy and immediate.It wasn't just that the braziers had flickered out– the low, constant hum of the ancient ward stones that had vibrated beneath the floorboards for generations simply stopped. The ambient heat in the air vanished in a single breath, replaced by a bitter, unnatural chill that seeped straight through stone and boots alike."Torin!" Asher roared down the dark stairwell, his voice cutting through the unnatural quiet."I'm here!" Torin’s heavy boots slammed against the stone steps as he sprinted up the spiral tower, his short sword already drawn. His face was pale, his dark eyes wide. "The boundary markers along the eastern tree line just shattered. Pure physical stone, Asher. They cracked right down the middle like dry ice.""The iron box," I muttered, my fingers tightening around the hilt of the small blade hidden in my gown. I turned back to look at Serena. She had curled herself into a tight ball in the corner of the ce

Livia’s POVThe heavy iron gates at the edge of the courtyard were shut tight.Outside the bars, thirty of Kaelen’s northern guards stood in a straight line, their grey cloaks soaked dark by the drizzling rain. They carried long iron spears resting against their shoulders, blocking the main road that led down into the valley.My father was standing near the gatehouse, wrapped in a thick wool coat. He looked exhausted, his hand leaning heavily on his cane, but his jaw was set tight as he watched the northern warriors block his own road.Asher and I walked up the cobblestone path together, our wet boots squelching with every step.Alpha Kaelen was sitting on his silver-grey stallion just outside the iron bars. He wore a dry fur coat, his silver-blonde hair damp from the rain, holding his horse's leather reins with casual ease."Alpha Kaelen," Asher called out, stopping a few feet short of the gate. He didn't raise his sword, but his hand stayed rested on his hip, right beside the hilt.