All Chapters of I Refused my Alpha : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

The night air grew heavy.The soldiers of the Eastern Dominion stood silently beyond the Silver Pass, their crimson banners fluttering in the cold mountain breeze.No swords were raised.No arrows were drawn.Yet no one lowered their guard.Karl stepped in front of Lyra, his silver eyes fixed on Queen Seraphina.“You expect us to trust you?”Seraphina met his gaze without flinching.“No.”“I expect you to protect her.”Karl frowned.“Then why are you here?”The Queen took a slow breath.“Because I failed once.”“I refuse to fail again.”Lucien slowly walked past Karl.His blue eyes studied Seraphina carefully.“It has been twenty-one years.”“You haven’t changed.”A faint smile touched Seraphina’s lips.“You have.”“You’ve become far grimmer.”Lucien almost smiled.“Life has a way of doing that.”Arnold glanced between them.“You know each other?”“We fought together,” Lucien replied.“During the Great Northern War.”Seraphina nodded.“And before Lunaris fell…”“I was Queen Evelina’s

The crimson glow in the distance painted the night sky.For several seconds, nobody spoke.Then Lyra turned toward the horses.“We leave before sunrise.”Karl stepped forward.“We leave now.”Lucien nodded.“The longer we wait, the more time the Shadow King has.”Queen Seraphina immediately began giving orders.“Prepare the horses.”“Take only what we need.”“The wounded will travel in the center.”Within minutes, the peaceful shrine became a scene of hurried preparation.Lyra stood alone beside the river.The water reflected the red glow spreading across the horizon.She had spent her entire life wondering about her parents.Now she was finally returning to the place where their story had ended.But another question troubled her.Why had her father hidden the truth beneath the throne?And why had Adrian been trying to protect her?A quiet voice interrupted her thoughts.“You shouldn’t be alone.”Lyra turned.Karl stood a few steps away.“I needed some air.”He nodded.For a moment, n

Nobody moved.Adrian stood at the entrance of the ancient chamber, his dark cloak hanging heavily around him.Lyra stared at him.“Something has been trapped inside the Heart for twenty-one years?”Adrian nodded.“Since the night Lunaris fell.”Karl stepped beside Lyra.“What is it?”Adrian’s eyes shifted toward the glowing cracks beneath the Moon Throne.“I don’t know.”Caelan suddenly laughed bitterly.“You always say that.”Adrian looked at him.“And you always pretend you know everything.”The tension between the brothers filled the chamber.Lyra looked between them.“You both knew.”Neither answered.Her voice became firmer.“You both knew something was beneath my family’s throne, and nobody told me.”Caelan lowered his gaze.Adrian finally spoke.“Because your father made us promise.”“What promise?”Adrian looked directly at her.“To keep you away from Lunaris until you were ready.”Lyra’s eyes narrowed.“Ready for what?”“The truth.”The silver light beneath the throne suddenl

The roar beneath Lunaris shook the entire underground chamber.Dust fell from the ceiling.Ancient stones cracked.And somewhere above them, the bells of the ruined kingdom continued to ring.One after another.As if Lunaris itself had awakened.Lyra stood frozen.Queen.The word echoed in her mind.She looked at Adrian.“What did the throne mean?”Adrian stared at her with an expression she had never seen before.Fear.“The Moon Throne doesn’t simply choose a ruler,” he said.“It chooses the person who can command the ancient blood of Lunaris.”Lyra looked at the broken throne.“And now it chose me.”Adrian nodded.“Yes.”A deep rumble interrupted them.The Blood King stepped forward.“At last.”His crimson eyes fixed on Lyra.“The final heir has awakened.”Karl moved between them.“You won’t touch her.”The Blood King smiled.“You still believe you can protect her?”Karl raised his sword.“I don’t have to believe.”His eyes hardened.“I’ll try.”Lyra looked at him.For a moment, the

The words echoed through Lyra’s mind.The traitor is already among us.Everyone became suspicious.Karl looked at Adrian.Adrian looked at Caelan.Lucien’s hand moved toward his sword.Arnold stepped closer to Lyra.“Who?”Adrian’s eyes slowly moved across the group.“I don’t know.”Caelan frowned.“You said the traitor is among us.”“I said the traitor is among us,” Adrian replied. “I didn’t say I knew who.”Lyra looked at the black envelope in her hand.“Then we find out.”They returned to the ruins before nightfall.The ancient warriors remained outside the palace while Lyra, Karl, Lucien, Arnold, Adrian, Caelan, and Master Thorne entered the ruined throne room.The broken Moon Throne stood in the center.Lyra approached it.“Someone knew I would awaken the army.”Master Thorne nodded.“Which means someone has been watching us.”Lucien looked toward the doors.“We should assume every message we’ve received could have been intercepted.”Karl’s expression hardened.“Then we stop send