The Alpha King And His Chosen Luna novel Chapter 103

“No,” I answered calmly. “Most of them accepted what was done to you because it was easier than questioning it.”

Her gaze lowered briefly after that.

“Some enjoyed it,” she said quietly.

I didn’t argue with her.

Brent had enjoyed it. Torvin had enjoyed parts of it too. Others had simply allowed it because Ashcrest had taught them obedience mattered more than conscience. None of that changed the reality standing beside me now.

“They won’t make that mistake again,” I said.

Her eyes lifted toward mine slowly. There was still adjustment in her expression whenever I said things like that, like part of her expected promises to disappear the moment she reached for them. I understood why.

We continued walking without hurrying.

The further we moved through the territory, the more the pack reacted. Wolves lowered themselves out of instinct now. Not fully to their knees, not like the holding chambers earlier, but enough to show submission before they even realized they were doing it.

Isla noticed every single one.

“They’re afraid,” she said.

“They should be careful,” I corrected.

That pulled her attention back toward me fully.

“There’s a difference.”

She studied my face for a moment after that like she was trying to decide exactly what I meant. I let her take the time to think about it.

“Fear fades quickly,” I continued. “Respect lasts longer.”

“And what do they feel now?”

“Both.”

1.3

Every step notice–2

She absorbed that quietly.

+25 Points

A breeze moved across the grounds, carrying the scent of pine and cold air through the territory. It shifted strands of Isla’s hair lightly around her face before settling again. Her attention moved across Ashcrest once more, slower this time.

Not searching for danger.

Understanding.

“My whole life happened here,” she said after a while. “Every part of it.”

I listened without interrupting.

“I used to think I’d die here too.”

Her voice stayed calm when she said it. That made the words land harder than if emotion had broken through them. She wasn’t trying to gain sympathy from the truth. She was simply saying it aloud.

“You won’t,” I answered.

Her eyes shifted toward me again.

There wasn’t any hesitation in my voice because there wasn’t any hesitation in the reality of it. That future no longer existed for her. The moment I walked into that shack, Ashcrest lost any right to decide how her life ended.

I felt Isla breathe in slowly beside me.

Something about the grounds had changed for her already. I could see it in the way she walked now. The hesitation wasn’t gone completely, but it no longer controlled every

movement she made.

That mattered.

We reached the side of the pack house where the noise of the territory softened slightly around us. No one stood close enough to interrupt. Royal guards remained stationed throughout the grounds while Ashcrest wolves kept their distance carefully.

Isla looked toward the open stretch of land ahead of us.

“For years I thought surviving was the only thing I was allowed to do,” she said quietly.

I stayed silent.

“Now I don’t know what comes after surviving.”

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